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LIFE  OF 


MAJOR-GENERAL 


JAMES  SHIELDS 


HERO  OF  THREE  WARS 

AND 

SENATOR  FROM  THREE  STATES 


BY 


HON.  WILLIAM  H.  CONDON 

i ) 

President  of  the  Chicago  Lawyers'1  Club 


PRESS  OF  THE  BLAKELY  PRINTING  Co. 
CHICAGO  Q  (\( 

^      \       \ 


E4-03 


COPYRIGHT,  1900 
BY  WILLIAM  H.  CONDON 

CHICAGO,  ILL. 


DEDICATION 

4» 

TO  THE  RACE  HE  SPRUNG  FROM 
AND  THE  NATION  HE  FOUGHT 
FOR  IN  MEXICO  AND  IN  THE 
SHENANDOAH  VALLEY,  AS 
WELL  AS  THE  VOLUN 
TEERS  HE  FOUGHT 
WITH, 

I 

RESPECTFULLY   DEDICATE   THIS 
LIFE  OF  THE  HERO  OF  THREE 
WARS  AND  THE    SENA 
TOR  FROM  THREE 
STATES 


LIST     OF     ILLUSTRATIONS. 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAGE 

1.  Room  in  Which  General  Shields  Was  Born n 

2.  His   Brother   Patrick 12 

3.  His   Brother  Daniel 13 

4.  Drawing  of  Shields'  Cottage 16 

5.  Scene  of  Shields'  First  Duel 25 

6.  Illinois'  First  Capitol  at  Kaskaskia 31 

7.  Chenue  House,  Where  Lafayette  Was  Banqueted.  .  37 

8.  Capitol  at  Vandalia,  in  Which  Shields  Served 40 

9.  General  Shields    as  He  Appeared  in  Mexico 56 

10.  Battle  of   Cerro  Gordo 59 

11.  Size  of  Ball  That  Passed  Through  His  Body 69 

12.  General  Shields  at  Battle  of  Chapultepec oo 

13.  The  Swords  of  Cerro  Gordo 173 

14.  The   Battle   of  Winchester 176 

15.  General  Shields   as  He  Appeared  at  Winchester.  .  181 

16.  Charge  of  Tyler's  Brigade  at  Winchester 210 

17.  General  Shields  at  the  Battle  of  Port  Republic 216 

18.  General  Stonewall  Jackson 228 

19.  Map  of  Winchester  and  Port  Republic 231 

20.  Rev.  Walter  Elliott 234 

21.  Robert  D.  McCarter,  Boy  and  Man 239 

22.  Colonel  Voris  at  Winchester 240 

23.  Colonel  Sprigg  Carroll  at  Port  Republic 262 

24.  Statehouse   in   Springfield,    111.,   in   Which    General 

Shields  Wras  Elected  Senator 268 

25.  General  Shields  When  Senator  from  Missouri — His 

Autograph 272 

26.  Capt.  M.  H.  Hogan,  of  Rochester,  N.  Y 274 

27.  General  Shields'  Last  Picture 302 

28.  General   Shields'   Unmarked   Grave   at    Carrollton, 

Mo 330 

29.  Patrick  Donahoe,  Editor  of  The  Pilot 338 

30.  Present  Capitol  of  Illinois 343 

31.  Shields'    Statue    in    Statuary    Hall,    Washington, 

D.    C 345 

32.  Governor  Altgeld  and  Others  at  Unveiling 362 

33.  General  Shields  Statue 365 

34.  William  J.  Onahan,  LL.  D 376 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Ancestry — Birth — Celtic  Name — Early  Education — His  Military  Genius 
Shown  When  Ten  Years  of  Age — How  He  Planned  and  Won 
His  First  Battle — Great  Men  of  the  Present  Century.  9 


CHAPTER     II. 

How  Shields  Planned  and  Won  His  First  Battle — Shrewdness  and 
Valor  When  Ten  Years  Old— How  He  Thrashed  a  Swell- 
Arrival  of  Uncle,  a  Veteran  of  the  Revolutionary  War  and  of 
the  War  of  1812 — His  Influence  on  Shields'  Career — The  Youth's 
Taste  for  Books — Association  with  Wellington's  Veterans — 
Taught  Sword  Exercise — Acquisition  of  Military  Knowledge. 

. .  18 


CHAPTER     III. 

Shields'  First  Duel— Its  Cause— As  a  Boy  He  Met  at  Dawn  a  Veteran 
of  Napoleonic  Wars  in  Deathly  Conflict — His  Opponent's  Last 
Will— The  Sequel.  22 


CHAPTER     IV. 

His  Mother's  Desire  to  Prepare  Him  for  the  Bar  Frustrated  by  His 
Uncle's  Influence — Emigration  to  America — Arrival  at  Quebec — 
Failure  to  Find  His  Uncle — Shields'  Experience  as  Mate  of  a 
Ship — Serious  Injury  by  Fall  While  at  Sea — Arrival  in  New  York 
Unconscious — Shipwreck  on  Coast  of  Scotland — Experience  as 
Teacher  There— Value  of  Nautical  Skill  Forty  Years  Afterward 
— He  Goes  West — Teaches  School — Studies  Law  in  Illinois — 
Settles  in  Kaskaskia — the  Quaint  Old  Town,  and  Its  Decay — 
Elected  to  the  Legislature,  Where  He  Served  with  President 
Lincoln,  Senator  Douglas,  General  Hardin  and  Other  Senators 
and  Generals — Pen  Pictures  of  Lincoln  and  Others — Lawyers  the 
Greatest  Patriots.  26 

CHAPTER     V. 

State  Auditor— How  He  Saved  the  State  Credit  and  Made  Political 
Enemies  Thereby— How  Lincoln  Attacked  Him  Anonymously, 
and  How  Miss  Todd,  the  Future  Mrs.  Lincoln,  and  Miss  Jayne, 
the  Future  Mrs.  Trumbull,  Also  Ridiculed  Him  Through  the 
Press  Anonymously— Lincoln's  Espousal  of  the  Paternity  of  the 
Articles  in  Question— His  Refusal  of  a  Retraction  Upon  Shields' 
Demand— Shields'  Challenge  of  Lincoln— Actions  of  His  and 
Lincoln's  Seconds— Intervention  of  Friends— Start  for  the  Place 
of  Meeting,  and  the  Sequel.  43 


2  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER     VI. 

Shields  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Illinois — His  Illustrious  Asso 
ciates — Distinguished  Practitioners  and  Leaders  of  the  Bar  of 
Illinois — Appointed  Commissioner  of  the  General  Land  Office  at 
Washington  by  President  Polk — His  Plan  for  an  Irish  Colony 
in  Iowa — Resignation  as  Land  Commissioner.  50 


CHAPTER     VII. 

Resignation  as  Land  Commissioner — Commission  as  Brigadier-Gen 
eral — Assigned  to  Command  the  Illinois  Regiments — Transfer  from 
Taylor  to  Scott — At  Cerro  Gordo  a  Grapeshot  Passes  Through 
His  Body — Extraordinary  Means  Adopted  to  Save  His  Life — 
Irish  Surgeon  and  French  Doctor  Push  a  Silk  Handkerchief 
on  a  Ramrod  Through  His  Right  Lung  and  Out  of  His  Back 
Near  the  Spine.  55 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

Contreras — Churubusco  and  Chapultepec — Key  to  Painting  in  Capi 
tol  at  Washington,  D.  C. — Bravery  Shown  in  Each  Battle  and 
Wounds  Received — When  Shields  Was  Nearest  Death.  75 


CHAPTER  IX. 

Noble  Rescue  of  Women  on  the  Eve  of  the  Capture  of  the  City  of 
Mexico — Poem  on  His  Noble  Deed — Unparalleled  in  Any  General's 
Career  Under  Similar  Circumstances — Election  to  United  States 
Senate.  "7 


CHAPTER     X. 

Army    Disbanded — Elected    United    States    Senator    from    Illinois    for 
*  Term  of  Six  Years — Appointed  on  Several  Very  Important  Com* 
mittees — Favored  Land  Grants  to  Soldiers  and  Sailors,  to  Agri 
cultural  Colleges  and  Railroads  to  Develop  the  West — Homestead 
Law — Against   Slavery.  122 

CHAPTER     XI. 

Shields'  Welcome  to  Kossuth — Resolution  and  Speech  Against  British 
Interference  in  Central  America — Sound  Monroe  Doctrine — 
Bounty  Lands  Not  a  Gratuity  But  a  Reward  for  Honorable 
Services.  Z47 


CHAPTER     XII. 

Admission  of  California — Senator  Shields'  Greatest  Speech — It  Stamps 
Him  as  a  Statesman  as  Well  as  a  Prophet — Would  Not  Widen 
the  Breach  Between  the  North  and  South  or  Excite  the  Passions 
or  Prejudices  of  One  Section  Against  the  Other — If  a  Republican 
Form  of  Government  Fails  Here,  It  Need  Never  Be  Attempted 
Again — Where  Compromise  Ends  Force  Begins,  and  Where 
Force  Begins  War  Begins — Gold  the  Cause  of  More  Than  Half 
the  Evils  of  Civilized  Society — No  Southern  Slave  Owner  Will 


CONTENTS.  3 

Ever  Venture  to  Carry  His  Slaves  to  That  Country-The  Whole 
Country  United  Cannot  Force  Slavery  on  Californians,  Who  Will 
Carry  Your  Flag  Some  Day  Into  Asia  and  Through  China- 
Slavery  Was  Never  Intended  by  God  to  Be  There  and  Will  Not 
Be  Permitted  by  Men— You  Might  as  Well  Attempt  to  Plant 
Orange  Groves  in  Siberia  as  Establish  Slavery  in  California  or 
New  Mexico— It  Is  Inevitable  That  the  Power  of  the  Free  States 

Ir  TV T&0n  £at6  i°Ver  the  Power  of  the  Slave  States— You 
Can  No  More  Equalize  the  States  Then  You  Can  Equalize  Their 
Population— The  North  Will  Never  Consent  to  See  One  Foot  of 
free  boil  Converted  Into  Slave  Soil— As  Well  Attempt  to  Con 
vert  a  Free  Man  Into  a  Slave-No  Human  Law  Can  Give  Ab«o- 
w  M  ppew  m  ^n"~An-  AttemPt  at  Dissolution  of  the  Union 
Would  Be  War  of  Extermination  and  Desolation  of  Which  None 
But  God  Could  Foresee  the  End— The  Idea  of  Quietly  and 
Peaceably  Submitting  to  See  a  Separate  Confederacy  Is  Prepos 
terous—Very  Little  Short  of  Insanity.  160 

CHAPTER     XIII. 

^  0,f.rStonewall  Jackson  Described  in  Leslie's  Pictorial  History  of 
the  War-General  Shields'  Official  Report— Colonel  Kimball's  and 
lyler  s  Reports— Captain  Schriber's  Report— Colonel  Carroll  Driven 
from  Bridge  by  Jackson.  I76 

CHAPTER     XIV. 

How  Shields  Decoyed  Stonewall  Jackson  Into  the  Battle  of  Winchester 
•n  S?*??1,  sTT?lctorial  History  of  the  Civil  War— Account  of  It 
in  Woods  History  of  the  Seventh  Ohio— His  Account  of  the  Bat 
tle  of  Port  Republic— General  Taylor's  Account  in  "Destruction 
and  Reconstruction."  205 

CHAPTER     XV. 

Typical  Volunteers  of  1861— Small  Acorns  Then,  Gigantic  Oaks  Now- 
Renowned  for  Virtue  in  Peace  as  They  Were  for  Bravery  in 
War — Clergyman — Merchant — Judge.  233 

CHAPTER     XVI. 

Stanton  Reviled  Lincoln  and  Then  Accepted  Office  from  Him— His 
Injustice  to  Shields— Duplicity  with  McClellan  and  Unwar 
ranted  Reflections  upon  Sherman.  241 

CHAPTER     XVII. 

Shields  a  Political  Martyr— More  Proof  of  Colonel  Carroll's   Failure 

at   Port    Republic — Colonel    Haycock's    Conclusive    Evidence 

General  Jones  an  Unwilling  Corroborator  of  Colonel  Haycock- 
General  Coppinger's  Opinion — General  Sheridan's  Rank  When 
General  Shields  Defeated  Stonewall  Jackson — Extract  from 
General  Oates'  Speech — But  for  Carroll's  Disobedience  General 
Shields  Would  Have  Been  One  of  the  Most  Successful  Generals 
in  the  Civil  War.  260 


4  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER     XVIII. 

Senator  Shields  in  Minnesota— One  of  the  Founders  of  Faribault  and 
Shieldsville— His  Election  as  One  of  Its  First  Senators— De 
parture  for  California — Marriage  There — His  Children — Small 
Pension  Until  Just  Before  His  Death.  267 

CHAPTER     XIX. 

Celebration  of  the  Twenty-fifth  Anniversary  of  the  Organization  of 
the  Shields  Guard  at  Auburn,  N.  Y.,  in  1877— Welcome  by 
Colonel  Kennedy— Response  by  General  Shields— Procession- 
Flag  of  the  Palmetto  Regiment  of  South  Carolina  Carried 
Through  the  Mexican  War— Speaker  Pomeroy's  Address— Gov 
ernor  Robinson's  Welcome— Governor  Wade  Hampton's  Re 
sponse—General  Shields'  Enthusiastic  Welcome  and  Brilliant 
Speech.  2?3 

CHAPTER     XX. 

Speech  at  Banquet  Given  by  Meagher's  Irish  Brigade  on  the  Potomac 
—At  the  Tabernacle  in  Chicago— Great  Political  Address  Deliv- 


/\l     LUC      -L  dUCl  llct\^n~    in     v_x i A i v. a. £,  \s         -^M  j. -^  -  —     — 

ered  in   Kansas  City  on   Greeley^  and^  Brown— Letter  on  Jtiome 
Rule  in  Irela 
Charity  Fair. 


ereo   in    jxaiisctb   \^ny    uu    vjicti^j    ou%*   j_fiw»Yi.i     **^»»<  i.    w*.   -      — - 

Rule  in  Ireland— Introduction  of  Jefferson   Davis  at  Sisters  of 
—      •       *-  «  283 


CHAPTER     XXL 

Lecture  at  St.  Joseph,  Mo.,  on  St.  Patrick's  Day— Lecture  in  Steinway 
Hall,  New  York,  on  St.  Patrick's  Day— Speech  at  St.  Joseph, 
Mo.,  on  the  Fourth  of  July. 

CHAPTER     XXII. 

Lecture  in  Brooklyn  in  Behalf  of  Yellow  Fever  Sufferers— His 
Graphic  Descriptions  of  Jackson,  Webster,  Clay  and  Calhoun— 
Eloquent  Speeches  by  Other  Prominent  Citizens. 

CHAPTER     XXIII. 

General  Butler,  a  True  Friend  of  General  Shields,  One  of  America's 
Greatest  Lawyers— Heroic  Method  Adopted  to  Reduce  Hours 
of  Labor  in  Factories— Splendid  Address  by  a  Brave  Lawyer— 
His  Efforts  to  Secure  Justice  for  the  Destruction  of  a  Convent 
and  to  Wipe  Out  a  Stain  on  the  Escutcheon  of  Massachusetts- 
Senatorial  Duplicity  and  Parsimony.  324 

CHAPTER     XXIV. 

Death  of  General  Shields  on  a  Lecturing  Tour,  at  Ottumwa,  Iowa, 
on  Sunday,  June  i,  1879 — Funeral  at  Carrollton,  Mo.,  Attended 
by  Prominent  Citizens  from  St.  Louis— Military  Escort— Reli 
gious  Services— His  Unmarked  Grave— Attempt  to  Induce  Fel 
low  Townsmen  to  Erect  a  Monument  to  His  Memory.  329 


CONTENTS.  5 

CHAPTER  XXV. 

General  Shields'  Greatest  Journalistic  Friends — Their  Struggles  and 
Triumphs — Vast  Influence  for  Good,  for  God,  Race  and  Coun 
try — Glorious  Records  of  Patrick  Ford,  of  the  Irish  World,  and 
Patrick  Donahoe,  of  the  Pilot.  332 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

Illinois  Legislature  Instructs  Its  Senators  to  Vole  for  the  Purchase 
of  Shields'  Swords — Nine  Thousand  Dollars  Appropriated  for 
Shields'  Statue — Who  Obtained  It — The  Commissioners — 
Unveiling  of  Statue  at  Washington,  D.  C,  December  6,  1893 — 
Speeches  of  Hon.  William  H.  Condon,  Governor  Altgeld,  John 
C.  Tarnsey,  M.  C.,  and  Senator  Turpie — Poem,  "Sword  of  Cerro 
Gordo" — Over  Twenty-nine  Millions  Represented  at  the  Cere 
mony.  342 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

Banquet  at  National  Hotel — Large  Attendance — Poem,  "The  Shields 
Statue" — Long  List  of  Toasts  and  Eloquent  Responses — Dona- 
hoe's  Magazine — Beattie,  the  Poet,  a  Mexican  War  Veteran. 

360 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

Striking  Incidents  in  General  Shields'  Life — Eloquent  Tributes  Paid 
Him  by  Leading  Statesmen,  Bishops,  Scholars  and  Journalist? — 
Interesting  Sketch  of  His  I  ife  by  Dr.  Onahan.  367 


CHAPTER   XXIX. 

My  Interesting  Friend  of  the  Confederate  Army — Efforts  to  Erect 
Statues  to  General  Shields  and  Frances  E.  Willard  in  Illinois- 
Appeal  to  the  Ladies — Opposition  of  Some  of  the  Press — Indif 
ference  of  Judges  and  Opposition  of  South  Park  Commissioners 
— Manly  Indorsement  by  Colonel  John  F.  Finerty  in  The  Citizen, 
and  Favorable  Notice  by  the  Milwaukee  Catholic  Citizen — Hon. 
Wm.  H.  Harper's  Broad  Americanism.  379 


PREFACE. 


PREFACE. 


Doubting  my  ability  to  do  justice  to  the  career  of 
such  a  triple  crowned  warrior,  jurist  and  statesman  as 
General  James  Shields,  yet,  as  more  than  a  score  of  years 
have  passed  since  his  death,  and  no  one  has  published  a 
record  of  his  public  services,  civil  and  military,  and  since 
they  cannot  be  appreciated  unless  they  are  known,  I  under 
take  the  pleasant  duty  of  presenting-  them  to  the  world. 

I  had  the  honor  of  the  hero's  acquaintance,  attended 
several  of  his  lectures  in  Chicago,  met  him  frequently, 
often  corresponded  with  him  and  was  one  of  his  ardent  ad 
mirers.  After  his  death  I  assisted  in  securing  congres 
sional  legislation  which  resulted  in  the  sale  of  his  swords 
to  the  nation,  the  money  realized  therefrom  materially  aid 
ing  his  widow  in  the  support  and  education  of  his  sons 
and  daughter. 

Having  conceived  the  idea  of  Illinois  declaring  Shields 
one  of  her  immortals,  and  having  prevailed  upon  its  Legis 
lature  to  appropriate  nine  thousand  dollars  for  a  bronze 
statue  of  him  to  perpetuate  his  heroic  deeds,  which  stands 
in  the  Capitol  at  Washington,  while  engaged  in  this  work 
I  learned  many  interesting  incidents  in  General  Shields' 
life  of  his  contemporaries  and  friends. 

Believing  that  he  was  not  treated  justly  when  prac 
tically  removed  from  command,  after  his  victory  over 
Stonewall  Jackson  at  Winchester,  and  that  his  wisdom 
as  a  statesman  is  comparatively  unknown,  I  resolved  to 


8  PREFACE. 

place  it  and  his  military  achievements  before  readers  of 
all  classes  in  a  plain,  economical* form,  convinced  that  a 
perusal  of  his  record  will  tend  to  raise  the  General  in  the 
estimation  of  his  countrymen  and  the  world  at  large.  I 
have  spared  neither  time,  labor  nor  expense  in  gathering 
material  with  which  to  weave  a  faithful  narrative  of  his 
life  and  character.  I  make  no  claim  to  merit  for  this  pro 
duction.  It  will  be  found  to  be  just  and  truthful  as  well 
as  fearless  in  its  criticism  of  those  who  wronged  the  hero 
of  three  wars  and  the  Senator  from  three  states. 

I  have  no  pride  or  ambition  of  authorship.  If  this 
work  shall  make  the  youth  of  our  country  emulate  the  ex 
ample  of  this  great  American  and  induce  them  to  adopt  his 
high  sense  of  honor,  his  nobility  of  purpose  and  to  be  ever 
ready  like  him  to  respond  to  their  country's  call,  my  object 
will  be  attained  and  I  shall  be  amply  rewarded. 

WILLIAM  H.  CONDON. 
Chicago,  August  n,  1900. 


LIFE  OF 
MAJOR-GENERAL  JAMES  SHIELDS. 


CHAPTER  I. 


Ancestry — Birth — Celtic  Name — Early  Education — His  Military  Genius 
Shown  When  Ten  Years  of  Age — How  He  Planned  and  Won 
His  First  Battle — Great  Men  of  the  Present  Century. 


James  Shields  was  born  in  Ireland,  a  country  re 
nowned  in  song  and  story  for  the  brilliancy  and  bravery 
of  its  sons  and  the  beauty  and  purity  of  its  daughters.  Its 
hills  and  valleys  have  resounded  with  the  shouts  of  armies 
contending  for  supremacy  on  many  a  sanguinary  field. 
The  wail  of  the  disconsolate  widow  and  the  cry  of  the 
famished  orphan  have  often  been  heard  in  the  land.  Fam 
ines  caused  by  foreign  legislation  and  prolonged  by  un 
feeling  landlords,  whose  fiendishness  is  without  parallel 
among  civilized  people,  have  caused  millions  of  the  Irish  to 
seek  in  other  lands  freemen's  homes.  Cattle  now  graze 
where  cottagers  once  dwelt  in  peace  and  comparative 
plenty. 

Irish  poets,  statesmen  and  warriors  of  renown  have 
made  their  impress  on  the  history  of  the  world.  Her 
Moores,  Goldsmiths  and  Davises  live  wherever  poesy  is 
admired  and  love  and  patriotism  have  votaries.  Her 
Burkes,  Grattans,  O'Connells  and  Parnells  were  statesmen 
seldom  equaled  and  never  excelled,  while  her  Emmets  and 
Tones  stand  in  the  front  rank  of  martyrs  for  liberty  wher 
ever  it  is  known  and  cherished. 

In  religious  circles  no  race  has  shown  more  fervor  or 
zeal  than  the  Irish.  Her  saints,  cardinals,  archbishops, 
bishops,  priests,  monks,  ministers  and  last,  but  most  be- 


10  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

loved  of  all,  her  sisters  have  won  the  plaudits  of  sectarian 
and  infidel,  as  well  as  Christian,  by  their  heroism  on  tented 
field,  amid  the  pestilential  air  of  the  hospital  and  in  the 
highways  and  byways  where  want  and  woe  lurk,  as  well 
as  "beside  the  bed  where  parting  life  is  laid."  Their  stu 
dents  the  world  over  bear  the  ineffaceable  impress  of  the 
sisters'  endeavors  to  "allure  to  brighter  worlds  and  lead  the 
way."  In  the  salons  of  the  learned  and  in  the  parlors  of 
the  cultured,  the  grace,  refinement  and  purity  taught  by 
precept  and  example  lend  a  charm  above  and  beyond  all 
other  accomplishments  to  the  graduates  of  their  academies 
and  convents. 

But  while  some  may  question  the  superiority  of  the 
Irish  race  in  all  these  walks  of  life,  few  will  be  found  to  con 
tend  that  the  Irishman  can  be  outclassed  as  a  soldier.  His 
valor,  his  self-sacrificing  bravery,  in  countless  forlorn 
hopes,  on  land  and  sea,  entitle  the  Irish  soldier  to  a  proud 
position  among  the  "bravest  of  the  brave."  No  proof  is 
necessary  to  sustain  this  assertion.  The  historians  of 
nearly  every  nation  have  adorned  their  brightest  pages 
with  sublime  examples  of  the  heroism  of  Irishmen  in  an 
cient  and  modern  times.  To  recount  their  perilous  feats 
of  bravery,  which  the  world  knows  by  heart,  would  be  a 
needless  waste  of  time,  while  to  call  the  roll  of  those  who 
have  written  their  names  in  letters  of  living  light  high  upon 
the  scroll  of  fame  would  transcend  the  limits  of  an  intro 
duction  to  the  life  of  the  greatest  Irishman  who  ever  trod 
American  soil,  whose  name  shines  in  the  judicial,  legislative 
and  military  records  of  Illinois,  Minnesota,  Missouri  and 
of  the  United  States  of  America. 

James  Shields  was  born  at  Altmore,  in  a  mountainous 
district  of  the  County  of  Tyrone,  Ireland,  on  May  6,  1806, 
of  Catholic  parents.  His  father  was  Charles  Shields,  and 
his  mother  was  Anne  McDonnell,  who  died  in  1842,  after 
her  son  James  had  won  renown  in  Illinois.  Her  husband 
died  in  1812.  There  were  but  three  children  born  to  them 
— James,  at  the  date  aforesaid;  Daniel,  on  April  2,  1808, 
and  Patrick  on  March  17,  1810.  Patrick  died  two  years 
after  the  General's  death  and  Daniel  two  or  three  years 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


11 


later.  General  Shields'  father  is  buried  in  an  ancient  grave 
yard  at  Canaghmore,  in  the  County  of  Tyrone.  His 
mother  is  buried  at  Galbally,  in  the  same  parish,  and  his 
brothers  lie  in  one  grave  at  the  little  chapel  on  Altmore 
Mountain.  Tradition  is  to  the  effect  that  the  McDonnells, 
Shields'  mother's  family,  came  from  Limerick  and  settled 
in  the  County  of  Antrim.  The  General's  father  was 


The  window  lowered  from  the  top  is  of  the  room  in  which  James  Shields  first  saw  light. 

being  "waked"  when  the  news  of  the  battle  of  Waterloo 
was  received. 

Like  causes  produce  like  effects.  There  is  much 
truth  in  the  saying  that  "blood  will  tell/'  and  Shields' 
remarkable  career  is  a  verification  of  it.  That  his  brothers 
followed  peaceful  avocations  in  their  native  country  is 
much  more  strange  than  that  James  should  have  sought 
in  other  lands  a  chance  to  improve  his  condition  in  life, 
which  was  denied  him  on  his  native  soil.  No  Catholic 
then  could  be  a  member  of  Parliament. 


12  LIFE     OF     GEX.    SHIELDS. 

There  is  much  in  heredity.  His  paternal  ancestors 
for  many  generations  had  been  imbued  \vith  military 
spirit.  They  lived  at  Shanes  Castle  in  the  County  of 
Antrim.  The  father  and  four  sons  of  one  of  the  earliest 
ancestors  of  which  any  record  can  be  found  and  authen 
ticated  espoused  the  cause  of  King  James  of  England 


? ..:•---. :  -    -  - 


against  William.  At  the  battle  of  the  Boyne  the  father 
and  one  son  were  killed.  Daniel,  the  youngest  son.  found 
their  bodies  the  night  after  the  battle  and  buried  them. 
He  then  rejoined  the  Irish  army  and  fought  at  Aughrim, 
Athlone  and  at  the  siege  of  Limerick.  After  its  surren 
der  the  surviving  brothers  separated  never  to  meet  again. 


LIFE     OF     GEX.    SHIELDS. 


13 


The  two  eldest  went  with  some  of  the  Irish  soldiers  to 
Spain,  where  one  rose  to  a  high  grade  as  an  officer  and 
finally  became  governor-general  of  Cuba.  The  youngest, 
Daniel,  returned  to  his  home  in  the  north  of  Ireland,  amid 
the  mountains  of  Tyrone,  then  about  the  only  refuge  for 
Catholic  patriots,  misnamed  rebels.  Secretly  he  visited 


DANIEL    SHIELDS 


the  home  of  his  childhood,  to  find  all  his  father's  estate 
confiscated  and  granted  to  a  follower  of  King  William. 
One  son  escaped  to  France  and  emigrated  to  Jamaica, 
where  he  died.  Daniel  found  it  no  easy  task  to  avoid 
arrest  on  his  way  home,  and  reached  it  in  safety  by  hiding 
in  the  fields  by  day  and  traveling  at  night.  From  a  hid- 


14  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

ing-place  in  a  field  near  the  historic  banks  of  Lough 
Neagh  he  saw  a  boat  capsize  in  which  two  young  ladies 
were  sailing;  swam  to  their  assistance  and  rescued  them 
from  a  watery  grave.  They  proved  to  be  daughters  of 
Captain  Morris,  the  military  governor  of  Mount  Joy 
fortress,  a  strong  British  garrison  at  Lough  Neagh.  The 
father  gratefully  thanked  young  Shields  for  his  noble 
act  and  invited  him  to  his  family  circle,  where  his  bravery 
and  gallantry  were  highly  appreciated  and  eventually  re 
warded  by  the  hand  and  heart  of  one  of  the  accomplished 
young  ladies  he  had  saved  from  death..  She  became  his 
wife,  and  from  such  noble  blood  descended  the  warrior, 
jurist  and  statesman  whose  experiences  will  be  found  in 
the  following  pages.  Well  might  the  wise  predict  brave 
acts  and  heroic  deeds  of  the  children  of  such  parents. 
The  young  lady  who  was  rescued  from  a  watery  grave 
by  the  gallant  soldier  was  the  great-great-great-grand 
mother  of  General  James  Shields. 

Of  the  plantations  of  Ulster,  Sir  Toby  Caulfield  had 
assigned  to  him  the  Castle  Caulfield  estate,  on  condition 
that  he  build  a  fortress  on  the  Altmore  Mountains  to 
protect  Scotch  planters  from  disinherited  Irish  gentlemen, 
or  Rapparee,  who  had  organized  and  were  intrenched  in 
those  mountains. 

British  soldiers  for  years  occupied  the  fortress  erected 
by  Sir  Toby  Caulfield,  and  when  at  last  those  chiefs  of 
the  mountains  and  their  gallant  followers  were  extermi 
nated  in  true  English  style,  and  "o'er  their  cold  ashes 
upbraided"  by  the  name  of  robbers,  the  soldiers  were 
withdrawn  to  take  part  in  the  battle  of  Culloden  Moor 
and  the  garrison  finally  abandoned. 

Charles  Shields,  grandson  of  Daniel,  leased  the  bar 
racks,  and  it  was  in  his  portion  of  it  that  General  Shields 
was  born.  The  Shields  have  lived  there  over  two  hun 
dred  years.  Many  of  Charles'  forefathers  repose  in  an 
old  graveyard  at  Donaghmore,  in  the  County  of  Tyrone. 
A  tombstone  therein  records  the  death  of  his  ancestor 
who  was  buried  there  in  1771.  The  ancient  name  appears 
to  have  been  O'Shiel,  anglicized  into  Shields. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  15 

The  General's  grandfather  and  father  are  also  buried 
in  that  grave,  it  being  the  custom  there  to  bury  descendants 
in  the  graves  of  their  forefathers.  In  1770  the  Shields 
family  were  four  in  number,  James,  Patrick,  Daniel  and 
Bessie.  James,  the  eldest,  was  intended  for  the  priest 
hood,  and  went  to  France  to  complete  his  studies,  but 
finally  abandoned  them  and  emigrated  to  America.  Dan 
iel  married,  but  died  at  Altmore  without  issue.  Patrick 
also  died  there  childless.  Charles  married  Miss  Katha 
rine  McDonnell,'  a  lineal  descendant  of  the  Glencoe  Mc 
Donnells.  She  was  a  woman  of  superior  education  and 
varied  accomplishments,  who  gave  her  sons  all  the  edu 
cational  advantages  then  allowed  Catholics  by  English 
laws. 

The  present  century  saw  the  largest  number  of  great 
men  ever  living  at  one  time.  It  is  certain  that  there  is 
no  period  to  rival  the  first  years  of  the  nineteenth  century 
in  its  number  of  great  men,  no  period  even  to  compare 
with  it  except  the  fifth  century  before  the  Christian  era. 
In  the  year  1821,  the  year  in  which  Napoleon  died,  the 
following  were  alive :  In  literature,  Byron,  Shelley,  Keats, 
Coleridge,  DeQuincey,  Wordsworth,  Lamb,  Landor,  Ten 
nyson,  the  three  Brontes,  Victor  Hugo,  Heine,  Goethe, 
Holmes,  Dickens,  Thackeray,  Clough  and  Blake.  Among 
soldiers  were  living  the  Duke  of  Wellington,  Napoleon  and 
Moltke,  besides  a  number  of  great  generals  who  had 
either  seen  the  Napoleonic  wars  or  were  to  see  the  Crimea 
and  the  Indian  mutiny.  Among  philosophers  and  men 
of  science  were  Hegel,  Darwin,  the  two  Herschels,  Owen, 
Cuvier,  Daguerre,  Wheatstone,  Faraday  and  Simpson.  The 
painters  included  Wilke,  Landseer,  Turner  and  Meissonier. 
Mendelssohn,  Beethoven  and  Wagner  represented  music. 
Lesseps,  Brunei  and  the  two  Stephensons  represented  en- 
gineeering.  Among  statesmen  or  orators  were  Glad 
stone,  Bright,  Bismarck,  Russell,  Cavour,  Garibaldi, 
Abraham  Lincoln,  Thiers  and  Victor  Emmanuel.  Among 
historians  were  Grote,  Niebuhr,  Mommsen  and  Guizot; 
and  of  a  countless  host  of  men  who  were  famous  in  other 
directions  were  Sir  Richard  Burton,  Speke,  Le  Verrier, 


16 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  17 

Rowland   Hill,   Cornelius  Vanderbilt,  John  Walter,  Wil- 
berforce  and  Macaulay. 

William  E.  Gladstone  got  into  the  year  of  great 
babies,  1809,  only  by  a  scratch.  If  he  had  been  born 
three  clays  later  he  would  be  a  child  of  a  year  which  was 
not  so  memorable  for  its  births.  Among  the  great  per 
sonages  who  were  born  in  1809  were  Darwin,  Tennyson, 
Elizabeth  Barrett  Browning,  Edgar  A.  Poe,  the  histo 
rian,  Kinglake,  Mendelssohn,  Jules  Favre,  Lincoln,  Ham- 
lin,  Oliver  Wendell  Holmes  and  ex-Speaker  and  ex-Gov 
ernor  Robert  C.  Winthrop. 


18  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


CHAPTER     II. 


How  Shields  Planned  and  Won  His  First  Battle — Shrewdness  and 
Valor  When  Ten  Years  Old — How  He  Thrashed  a  Swell — 
Arrival  of  Uncle,  a  Veteran  of  the  Revolutionary  War  and  of 
the  War  of  1812— His  Influence  on  Shields'  Career— The  Youth's 
Taste  for  Books — Association  with  Wellington's  Veterans — 
Taught  Sword  Exercise — Acquisition  of  Military  Knowledge. 


When  the  General  was  a  boy  about  ten  years  old 
he,  with  his  two  brothers,  attended  a  hedge  school 
about  two  miles  from  his  home.  In  those  days  it 
was  not  easy  to  acquire  education,  as  there  were  only 
schools  maintained  by  private  subscription,  the  British 
government  preferring  to  keep  the  people  in  ignorance. 
The  school  referred  to  was  situated  on  the  dividing  line 
of  two  populous  districts,  and  the  boys  attending  formed 
themselves  into  rival  factions  representing  each  district. 
The  General  placed  himself  at  the  head  of  his  school 
mates,  and  a  boy  about  the  same  age,  named  McVeigh, 
was  elected  commander  of  the  opposing  forces.  The  riv 
alry  arising  from  competition  in  the  classes  extended  to 
rivalry  in  the  plays  and  pastimes  and  finally  developed 
into  a  strong  rivalry  in  their  quarrels.  The  teacher  had 
frequently  drawn  the  attention  of  their  parents  to  the  con 
tests  of  the  children.  Several  free  fights  on  their  account 
took  place  between  the  parents,  one  party  getting  worsted 
one  day,  the  other  getting  badly  beaten  the  next.  Finally, 
James  Shields  proposed  to  the  leader  of  the  opposing 
faction  to  fight  it  out  in  a  general  pitched  battle,  and  it 
was  agreed  that  a  Saturday  afternoon  should  be  fixed 
for  the  engagement. 

Each  commander  was  to  select  twelve  of  the  best 
fighting  boys  of  his  party,  who  were  to  be  armed  with 
willows,  or  what  are  called  there  sally  rods.  The  boys 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  19 

were  not  to  take  hold  of  each  other  or  to  strike  with 
fists.  The  result  of  the  battle  was  to  be  final,  and  the 
vanquished  were  in  future  to  yield  obedience  to  and 
acknowledge  the  superiority  of  the  victors.  For  several 
evenings  after  this  arrangement  had  been  made  James 
Shields  shut  himself  up  in  his  mother's  barn.  How  he  occu 
pied  his  time  is  disclosed  hereinafter.  Finally  the  eventful 
day  arrived,  but  as  McVeigh's  men  were  known  to  be  the 
stronger,  Shields  found,  when  he  mustered  his  forces,  three 
of  his  soldiers  had  deserted.  His  antagonists  were  some 
what  surprised  to  find  Shields,  notwithstanding  the  small- 
ness  of  his  forces,  willing  to  go  on  with  the  engagement. 
The  combatants  mustered  in  a  meadow,  the  word  of  com 
mand  was  given,  and  the  battle  opened  vigorously.  Both 
sides  fought  fiercely  till  their  weapons  were  worn  short 
or  broken,  but,  as  in  most  warfare,  numbers  were  about 
to  prevail  and  Shields'  forces  were  supposed  to  be  van 
quished.  Their  opponents  were  calling  upon  them  to 
surrender,  when  suddenly  Shields  in  a  loud  voice  com 
manded  his  men  to  charge  bayonets.  Then  from  under 
neath  their  little  jackets  each  boy  drew  a  short,  sharp- 
pointed  stick  made  of  hardwood.  In  a  minute  those  who 
had  considered  themselves  victors  were  in  full  retreat. 
They  could  not  stand  the  charge.  The  sharp-pointed 
spears  were  irresistible  and  soon  Shields  and  his  men 
were  left  in  possession  of  the  battlefield.  Thus  it  trans 
pired  that  Shield's  preparations  in  the  barn  had  gained 
his  party  the  victory.  He  had  spent  his  time  pointing 
the  sticks  with  which  he  secretly  armed  his  men.  He 
had  his  men  well  disciplined,  they  obeyed  his  orders  and 
secured  the  victory.  Truly,  the  boy  is  father  of  the  man. 
Commander  McVeigh,  who  led  the  opposing  contingent, 
often  took  pride  in  pointing  out  the  exact  spot  on  which 
James  Shields  fought  and  won  his  first  battle. 

Another  incident  of  Shields'  boyhood  is  worthy  of 
notice.  About  four  miles  from  his  home  there  was  a 
very  good  school  established  by  a  landlord.  The  patron 
was  a  high  dignitary  of  the  Church  of  England  who  after 
ward  became  bishop.  He  had  appointed  a  teacher  who 


20  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

was  a  graduate  of  Trinity  College  and  ranked  high  as  a 
teacher.  James  Shields  attended  the  school  and  made 
great  progress  in  his  studies.  A  son  of  the  patron  was 
a  classmate,  but  not  a  very  good  boy.  On  one  occa 
sion  he  set  two  little  boys  fighting  and  enjoyed  seeing 
them  tearing  each  other's  faces  and  bleeding  profusely. 
Shields,  as  soon  as  he  reached  the  scene  of  conflict,  tried 
to  separate  the  little  fellows,  but  his  classmate  endeavored 
to  prevent  him  from  interfering  until  one  of  the  boys 
would  admit  that  he  was  beaten  or  give  up.  Shields, 
incensed  at  such  brutality,  pulled  the  boys  apart,  when 
the  patron's  son  struck  Shields  in  the  face,  whereupon  a 
second  fight  began,  which  ended  in  Shields  thrashing 
the  young  swell  severely.  When  his  classmate  went  home 
bleeding  and  much  the  worse  in  wear  and  tear,  his  father 
returned  with  him  to  the  school  and  investigated  the 
cause  of  the  trouble.  Shields  stated  the  facts  and  cir 
cumstances  truthfully,  and  the  little  boys  corroborated 
his  statements,  whereupon  the  gentleman  exonerated 
Shields  from  all  blame,  commended  him  for  his  interfer 
ence  and  predicted  that  Shields  would  yet  become  a  great 
man.  Shields  never  attended  that  school  again.  Many 
years  afterward  the  patron  of  the  school  purchased  a 
commission  in  the  British  army  for  his  son  whom  Shields 
had  thrashed.  His  regiment  went  to  India,  and  there 
the  young  officer  was  dismissed  from  the  service  for  strik 
ing  a  brother  officer  at  the  mess  table.  He  returned 
to  his  home  in  Ireland  about  the  time  that  news  reached 
there  of  Shields'  glorious  career  in  Mexico,  and  his  father 
often  contrasted  the  career  of  the  two  schoolboys  and 
classmates. 

When  a  mere  child  James  developed  a  taste  for  books 
which  he  never  lost.  When  working  in  the  fields  he  often 
had  a  book  to  read  while  others  rested.  He  was  about 
six  years  old  when  his  uncle  and  namesake  arrived  home 
from  America.  The  elder  James  had  fought  through  the 
Wrar  of  Independence  and  was  with  Old  Hickory  in  a 
number  of  his  campaigns.  Uncle  James  was  wounded 
in  the  leg  at  the  battle  of  New  Orleans  and  went  to  Ire- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  21 

land  soon  after  with  the  bullet  still  in  his  leg.  He  re 
mained  for  two  years,  during  which  time  he  acted  as 
schoolmaster  to  young  James  and  laid  the  foundation 
of  his  military  career.  The  uncle  was  a  professor  of 
Latin  and  Greek  in  Charleston,  South  Carolina.  The  old 
veteran  never  ceased  recounting  his  adventures.  Young 
James'  mind  was  easily  impressed,  and  in  consequence 
his  life  ever  after,  while  in  Ireland,  was  a  preparation  for 
his  future  career  in  the  United  States.  Shortly  before 
his  uncle's  departure  the  old  man  exafnined  the  boy  to 
see  what  progress  he  had  made  with  his  books,  and  he 
answered  so  satisfactorily  that  the  uncle  was  very  much 
pleased,  and  told  the  boy  when  he  grew  bigger  he  (the 
uncle)  would  bring  him  to  America,  make  him  his  heir 
and,  pulling  out  his  gold  watch,  said  he  would  also  make 
him  a  present  of  the  watch.  That  watch  is  still  in  the 
family  and  is  at  present  in  possession  of  that  uncle's  great 
nephew,  James  Shields,  a  contractor  in  St.  Paul,  Min 
nesota. 

In  the  General's  boyhood  Ireland  was  full  of  old  sol 
diers  who  had  been  in  the  British  army  after  a  long  cam 
paign  against  Bonaparte.  After  the  defeat  of  that  great 
man  the  country  was  flooded  with  old  soldiers  and  pen 
sioners  with  maimed  arms  or  legs.  These  men  were  ob 
jects  of  great  interest  to  young  James  Shields,  and  he 
seldom  went  from  home  without  returning  with  one  of 
them  as  his  guest.  From  one  of  these  men  he  learned 
fencing  or  sword  exercise  and  he  became  so  expert  in 
the  art  that  few  men  of  any  size  or  experience  could  sur 
pass  him.  His  early  lessons  in  drilling  were  learned  from 
the  same  source.  His  first  military  knowledge  was  ac 
quired  from  books  presented  to  him  when  a  boy  by  one 
of  those  pensioners. 

He  became  educated  by  his  perseverance  in  study 
when  other  boys  of  his  age  were  recreating  in  amuse 
ments.  Untiring  application  to  every  detail  of  duty  was 
the  chief  reason  of  his  success  in  life.  Beyond  the  oppor 
tunity  of  a  hedge  school  he  studied  two  years  with  a 
clever  teacher,  a  native  of  Dublin.  A  relative  of  his 


22  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

mother,  a  clergyman  from  Maynooth  College,  retired  from 
active  work  on  account  of  ill-health,  assisted  him  very 
much  in  acquiring  classics.  One  of  the  old  soldiers,  who 
was  some  years  in  France  after  the  defeat  of  Napoleon, 
taught  him  French,  so  that  when  Shields  emigrated  to 
America  he  was  fairly  well  educated. 


CHAPTER     III. 


Shields'  First  Duel — Its  Cause — As  a  Boy  He  Met  at  Dawn  a  Veteran 
of  Napoleonic  Wars  in  Deathly  Conflict — His  Opponent's  Last 
Will— The  Sequel. 


Shields  fought  a  duel  in  Ireland  in  his  boyhood 
which  showed,  even  then,  that  his  was  the  mettle  of  which 
heroes  are  made.  In  the  valley  beneath  the  shadow  of 
the  Barrach  Mountains,  eight  miles  from  the  town  of 
Dungannon,  there  is  a  small  lake  that  materially  adds 
to  the  beauty  of  the  surrounding  district.  It  is  artificial, 
constructed  in  recent  years  to  provide  the  town's  water 
supply,  and  occupies  and  overflows  a  meadow  through 
which  once  flowed  the  river  torrent  before  it  emptied 
into  Lough  Neagh.  From  the  banks  of  the  lake  the  land 
gradually  rises  to  a  thousand  feet  or  more  above  the 
level  of  the  sea  to  the  summit  of  the  mountains.  Three- 
quarters  of  a  century  ago  the  country  surrounding  the 
lake  was  thickly  settled  by  industrious  people,  tenant 
farmers  who  raised  flax,  oats  and  potatoes.  Steam  was 
comparatively  unknown  then  as  a  power  and  the  power 
loom  unheard  of.  Flax,  the  staple  industry  of  Ulster, 
was  exclusively  in  the  hands  of  the  raisers  of  flax,  who 
sowed  the  seed,  raised  the  flax  and  manufactured  it  into 
cloth  in  their  cottages.  When  the  flax  grew  to  maturity 
it  was  pulled  up,  the  roots  steeped  in  a  pond  to  rot  and 
afterward  the  residue  was  strewn  on  grass  to  dry,  and 
beetled,  hackled  and  spun.  Afterward  women  wove  it 
into  cloth ;  it  thereby  furnished  employment  for  both  sexes 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  23 

and  gave  to  the  raiser  of  the  crop  the  profit  of  its  manu 
facture. 

It  was  the  custom  of  the  people  to  assist  one  another 
in  putting-  the  flax  through  these  different  stages  of  prepa 
ration  for  manufacture,  and  it  afforded  the  young  people 
of  both  sexes  an  opportunity  to  assemble  in  large  num 
bers  and  gratuitously  help  their  friends  in  their  work, 
and  they  in  return  usually  provided  an  entertainment 
for  their  benefactors. 

On  one  of  these  occasions  a  man  was  present  who 
had  emigrated  to  England  in  boyhood,  enlisted  in  the 
British  army  and  served  as  a  Connaught  Ranger  at  the 
battle  of  Waterloo  and  had  been  discharged  and  pensioned 
as  a  sergeant-major.  His  residence  in  England,  his  penin 
sular  service  and  pension  made  him  strongly  English 
in  sentiment.  His  communicative  disposition  in  regard  to 
his  travels  and  adventures  made  him  an  object  of  interest 
in  the  community,  and  his  presence  was  an  additional 
attraction  when  it  became  known  that  he  would  be  pres 
ent  at  such  rustic  entertainments.  He  was  quick-tem 
pered,  pugnacious,  easily  irritated,  sarcastic  and  sour  in 
speech.  He  was  also  full  of  arguments,  eager  to  debate 
any  and  all  questions  and  intent  on  maintaining  any  posi 
tion  taken  by  him,  whether  right  or  wrong,  and  if  words 
did  not  prove  effective  he  was  ready  and  willing  to  follow 
them  with  blows.  Egotistical  and  domineering,  he  at 
times  became  unbearable.  One  evening,  at  such  a  gath 
ering,  while  he  was  lauding  the  British  soldiers  to  the 
skies  for  their  valor,  James  Shields,  then  a  stripling,  took 
exceptions  to  the  amount  of  praise  given  the  soldiers 
mentioned  and  plainly  told  the  veteran  that  he  was  wrong. 
"You  are  a  liar!"  replied  the  veteran,  when,  with  light 
ning  rapidity,  Shields  struck  him  in  the  face,  to  the  aston 
ishment  of  all  present.  Friends  interfered  and  prevented 
further  conflict  at  that  time  and  it  was  generally  believed 
that  that  would  be  the  end  of  the  matter.  But 
the  fact  is  that  that  was  but  the  preliminary  skirmish;  the 
battle  was  to  be  fought  elsewhere,  and  that,  too,  to  the 
bitter  end. 


24  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

On  one  of  the  mountain  slopes  lived  one  McVeigh, 
who  had  worked  in  England  and  brought  from  it  a  brace 
of  pistols,  which  were  such  rare  implements  of  destruc 
tion  in  that  neighborhood  that  he  often  exhibited  them 
with  pride.  Before  daylight  on  the  night  in  question 
the  veteran  borrowed  these  pistols  on  the  pretext  that 
he  needed  them  to  protect  him  on  a  journey  he  was  about 
to  undertake.  He  obtained  writing  materials  from  Mc 
Veigh,  who  retired  for  the  night.  The  veteran,  after 
writing  for  some  time,  left  what  he  had  written  on  a 
table  and  covered  it  with  his  hat.  Tying  a  handkerchief 
around  his  head  he  left  the  house.  McVeigh  awoke  soon 
afterward  and  by  the  light  of  a  candle  which  the  veteran 
had  left  burning  he  saw  the  hat  and  found  its  owner  had 
disappeared.  It  being  about  dawn,  McVeigh  arose  and 
was  greatly  surprised  to  find  under  the  veteran's  hat  a 
paper  on  which  was  written,  "My  Last  Will."  Realizing 
that  there  was  trouble  ahead,  McVeigh  rushed  out  and 
hurriedly  ran  clown  a  path  leading  to  the  river,  and  in 
the  gray  dawn  discovered  two  men  standing  some  dis 
tance  apart  in  the  act  of  firing  at  each  other.  At  a  glance 
he  recognized  them  as  the  veteran  and  young  Shields. 
They  had  made  two  previous  attempts  to  shoot,  and  noth 
ing  but  the  defective  condition  of  the  flintlocks  saved 
them  from  injuries  or  death. 

Both  were  determined  to  fight,  and,  when  one  attempt 
proved  fruitless,  deliberately  picked  their  flints  and  tried 
again.  McVeigh  hastened  to  the  scene  of  conflict,  threw 
his  arms  around  the  veteran  and  turned  the  muzzle  of  his 
pistol  aside.  McVeigh  was  so  excited  that  he  shouted 
at  the  top  of  his  voice,  when  both  urged  him  not  to  inter 
fere,  and  the  outcry  brought  Hamilton,  another  neighbor, 
to  the  scene.  Through  their  intervention  peace  was  made 
between  the  combatants,  who  breakfasted  together  with 
Hamilton.  Thenceforward  the  veteran  became  Shields' 
constant  friend  as  well  as  his  French  tutor.  He  gave 
Shields  many  standard  military  works,  which  he  devoured 
with  avidity.  The  works  were  so  valuable  and  the  friend 
ship  of  these  two  men  became  so  strong  that  the  books 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


26  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

were  kept  as  mementos  of  the  affair  by  the  General  all 
his  life  and  were  seen  by  my  informant  at  the  General's 
homestead  in  Carrollton,  Missouri,  a  few  years  before  his 
death.  The  veteran  taught  Shields  fencing,  which  knowl 
edge  he  afterward  utilized  by  opening  a  fencing  school  in 
Quebec. 

The  veteran  died  a  few  years  after  the  duel  and  Shields 
in  after  life  reluctantly  confirmed  the  truth  of  the  above 
narrative,  adding  that  he  did  all  that  he  could  consistent 
with  honor  to  prevent  hostilities,  but  that  the  veteran  in 
sisted  upon  satisfaction  in  that  manner,  and  dueling  in  that 
day  was  quite  common  among  the  so-called  better  classes. 


CHAPTER     IV. 


His  Mother's  Desire  to  Prepare  Him  for  the  Bar  Frustrated  by  His 
Uncle's  Influence— Emigration  to  America— Arrival  at  Quebec- 
Failure  to  Find  His  Uncle— Shields'  Experience  as  Mate  of  a 
Ship— Serious  Injury  by  Fall  While  at  Sea— Arrival  in  New  York 
Unconscious— Shipwreck  on  Coast  of  Scotland— Experience  as 
Teacher  There— Value  of  Nautical  Skill  Forty  Years  Afterward 
—He  Goes  West— Teaches  School— Studies  Law  in  Illinois- 
Settles  in  Kaskaskia— the  Quaint  Old  Town,  and  Its  Decay- 
Elected  to  the  Legislature,  Where  He  Served  with  President 
Lincoln,  Senator  Douglas,  General  Hardin  and  Other  Senators 
and  Generals— Pen  Pictures  of  Lincoln  and  Others— Lawyers  the 
Greatest  Patriots. 

Shields  sailed  from  Liverpool  for  Quebec  in  1823, 
and  on  arrival  there  wrote  to  his  Uncle  James,  but  failing 
to  receive  a  reply  he  took  it  for  granted  that  his  uncle 
did  not  want  to  hear  from  him  and  therefore  never  wrote 
him  again.  The  uncle  had  died  in  the  meantime,  and 
as  Shields'  whereabouts  in  America  were  unknown  to  his 
friends  in  Ireland,  one  of  his  brothers  went  to  Charleston, 
South  Carolina,  where  James  had  died,  and  secured  what 
property  was  left  by  him. 

Mrs.  Shields  intended  to  prepare  James  for  the  bar, 
but  his  uncle,  the  American  Revolutionary  soldier,  turned 
the  youth's  mind  toward  military  pursuits,  and  when  it 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  21 

was  found  that  he  was  nightly  drilling  the  young  boys  of  the 
neighborhood,  the  uncle  predicted  that  if  James  did  not 
emigrate  he  would  be  hung  as  an  Irish  rebel.  The  ship 
that  he  emigrated  in  was  wrecked  on  the  west  coast  of 
Scotland,  and  only  the  captain,  one  Slattery,  a  seaman  and 
young  Shields  escaped.  He  taught  a  Presbyterian  cler 
gyman's  sons  for  three  months  while  his  ship  was  under 
going  repairs.  He  made  several  voyages  with  the  same 
captain  on  another  ship,  acting  as  clerk  or  supercargo, 
and  on  his  last  trip,  which  was  from  Peru,  South  America, 
he  was  blown  from  aloft  in  a  severe  storm  off  New 
York  harbor,  and  was  picked  up  for  dead  with  both  legs 
broken.  In  a  sisters'  hospital  for  three  months  he  hov 
ered  between  life  and  death,  but  their  careful  nursing  and 
kind  attentions,  aided  by  his  youthful  vigor,  restored  him 
to  health  and  strength. 

Dissatisfied  with  his  nautical  experience  he  abandoned 
a  seafaring  life  forever,  though  his  experience  and  knowl 
edge  thus  acquired  afterward  saved  the  lives  of  several 
ethers  as  well  as  his  own,  having  learned  to  box  the  com 
pass,  hand  reef  and  steer,  as  well  as  to  take  the  longitude 
and  latitude,  or  reckonings,  of  the  ship,  and  having  ac 
quired  other  practical  nautical  knowledge. 

Over  forty  years  afterward,  on  a  voyage  from  San 
Francisco  to  Mazatlan,  Mexico,  the  General  and  his 
wife  were  passengers  on  a  ship  of  which  the  owner  was 
its  captain.  It  was  his  first  voyage  to  that  port,  and  in 
a  storm  he  had  lost  his  reckonings,  and  found  the  vessel 
near  a  group  of  islands  whose  location  he  was  unfamiliar 
with.  Consultation  with  the  mate  resulted  in  a  disagree 
ment  as  to  the  course  to  be  steered  and  measures  to  be 
adopted  for  safety.  The  mate,  who  had  learned  of  the 
General's  knowledge  of  navigation  and  experience  at  sea, 
recommended  his  selection  as  an  umpire  to  decide  by 
the  chart  and  otherwise  which  of  the  parties  was  in  the 
right.  The  captain  consented,  and  on  examination  of  the 
chart  the  mate  was  found  to  be  correct,  but  the  danger 
being  imminent,  both  prevailed  on  the  General  to  take 
command,  which  he  did,  and  soon  extricated  the  ship 


28  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

from  her  perilous  course  and  retained  command  until 
she  safely  reached  port.  The  captain's  wife  and  Mrs. 
Shields,  having  ascertained  that  there  was  some  trouble 
about  the  ship's  course,  were  surprised  on  reaching  the 
deck  to  hear  the  General  issuing  orders  in  clarion  tones 
to  the  seamen  and  standing  barefoot  at  the  wheel,  which 
was  the  first  notice  that  they  had  of  a  change  of  captains. 
In  gratitude  for  the  General's  services  the  captain  insisted 
upon  returning  the  fares  of  the  captain  pro  tern  and  his 
wife. 

While  Shields  was  then  in  Mexico  the  French  and 
Mexicans  were  at  war.  The  French  were  in  control  of 
the  town  and  issued  orders  that  persons  and  their  prop 
erty  would  be  protected  only  by  placing  temselves  under 
French  protection.  The  General's  party  had  a  number 
of  mules  and  horses,  intended  for  use  at  their  mines,  and 
the  French  government  had  them  placed  on  an  island 
for  their  better  protection  from  Mexican  guerrillas  who 
infested  the  neighborhood.  Some  of  the  Mexicans  swam 
to  the  island  one  night,  mounted  and  swam  one  of  the 
mules  ashore.  Others  followed,  and  by  this  means  the 
whole  herd  w7as  stolen.  General  Shields  went  to  the 
French  commander  to  complain,  but  was  ordered  out  of 
his  headquarters.  He  then  rode  to  the  Mexican  camp, 
where  he  was  well  received  by  the  Mexican  commander, 
who  remembered  Shields'  record  for  bravery  in  the  Mexi 
can  war,  and  as  a  compliment  had  him  review  the  Mexi 
can  troops.  He  was  highly  entertained  by  the  Mexicans 
and  the  stolen  mules  were  returned;  but  when  the  Gen 
eral  returned  to  town  the  French  commander  arrested 
and  imprisoned  him.  After  being  under  arrest  over  night 
he  was  released  through  the  influence  of  the  American 
consul,  who  informed  the  French  governor  that  if  the 
prisoner  was  not  released  immediately  the  American  gov 
ernment  would  take  steps  to  have  him  removed  from 
control  in  Mexico.  As  the  result  of  this  threat  Shields 
was  set  at  liberty  without  delay. 

Thomas  D'Arcy  McGee,  in  his  "Irish  Letters  in 
America,"  says  that  Shields,  whom  he  knew  very  well, 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  ^9 

was  a  lieutenant  in  the  Florida  war  while  in  his  teens. 
The  Irish  World  and  Donahoe's  Magazine  corroborate 
this  statement.  He  undoubtedly  served  in  some  volun 
teer  corps,  as  the  United  States  adjutant-general's  reports 
of  that  war  show  four  of  his  name  as  privates,  but  none 
as  a  lieutenant. 

The  East  offered  few  inducements  to  the  enterpris 
ing  when  Shields  ceased  to  be  a  sailor.  Little  is  known 
of  his  career  until  he  followed  the  star  of  empire  west 
ward  and  arrived  in  Illinois,  where  he  taught  school  and 
afterward  studied  law.  He  settled  in  Kaskaskia,  Ran 
dolph  County,  then  an  old  French  town,  where  his  knowl 
edge  of  the  French  language,  his  wit  and  genial  dispo 
sition  soon  made  him  a  general  favorite.  Kaskaskia  was 
a  Whig  stronghold,  but  so  great  was  Shields'  popularity 
that  in  1835  he  was  triumphantly  elected  a  member  of 
the  Illinois  Legislature,  which  then  assembled  at  Van- 
dalia.  In  that  General  Assembly  he  first  met  and  had 
as  colleagues  President  Lincoln,  United  States  Senators 
Stephen  A.  Douglas,  Baker,  Palmer,  Davis,  McDougall 
and  Trumbull,  Generals  Hardin,  McClernard  and  others  of 
their  class.  McClernard  and  Palmer  still  survive.  They 
were  all  young,  ambitious,  energetic  and  studious,  and 
have  made  themselves  famous  in  different  states,  in  the 
councils  of  the  nation  as  well  as  in  the  military  annals 
of  the  country. 

Illinois  from  1835  to  1865,  through  its  native  and 
adopted  sons,  did  more  to  shape  the  policy  of  the  nation, 
sway  its  destinies  and  win  victories  for  it  in  war  than 
any  other  state  in  the  Union.  Such  men  of  indomitable 
will,  blessed  with  an  insatiable  thirst  for  knowledge,  knew 
that  industry  is  genius.  They  burned  midnight  oil,  and 
by  a  youth  of  toil  earned  an  age  of  ease.  Their  aims  were 
lofty  and  their  success  was  attained  by  honorable  means. 
They  felt  that  they  owed  the  world  a  lifetime  of  earnest 
endeavor,  and  were  unassuming  in  manner,  honest  in  act, 
truthful  in  word  and  self-sacrificing  in  spirit. 

Study,  serious  thought  and  calm  reflection  were  the 
sources  of  their  wisdom,  which  are  shown  in  the  state 


30  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

constitutions,  the  laws  upon  their  statute  books  and  in 
the  decisions  in  the  courts. 

In  Congress  they  favored  the  homestead  law,  which 
brought  settlers  to  the  Prairie  State.  They  aided  the 
Illinois  Central  Railroad  Company  to  build  its  thorough 
fare  through  the  state,  which  proved  a  great  blessing  to  its 
inhabitants,  while  the  permission  granted  to  aliens  to  ac 
quire  and  possess  land  in  Illinois,  together  with  the  allo\v- 
ance  of  ten  per  cent,  interest  on  loans  of  money,  brought 
vast  amounts  of  capital  to  develop  and  improve  the  com 
monwealth. 

It  was  from  such  well  springs  of  wisdom  that  Illinois 
rose  to  prominence,  and  by  their  aid,  in  a  great  measure, 
she  has  been  enabled  to  fulfill  the  most  sanguine  expecta 
tions  of  her  admirers  and  friends,  until  she  stands  to-day 
the  pride  and  glory  of  the  nation,  as  well  as  of  the  great 
West,  of  which  she  is  so  important  a  part. 


THE  PASSING  OF   KASKASKIA. 


Illinois'  First  Capital  Almost  Entirely  Obliterated  by  the  Mississippi 
—Some  of  the  Events  Which  Made  It  a  Historic  Spot— Governor 
Cole's  Curious  Prophecy. 

Kaskaskia,  the  second  oldest  town  of  Illinois,  once  the 
state  capital  and  a  historic  Indian  spot,  has  been  prac 
tically  destroyed  by  the  encroachments  of  the  Mississippi 
River.  But  two  hundred  feet  of  the  site  of  the  old  town 
remain,  and  these  will  be  swept  away  in  a  short  time. 
Where  once  stood  the  business,  political  and  social  metrop 
olis  of  the  entire  Northwest,  the  waters  of  the  Mississippi 
now  roll.  Where  Lafayette  kissed  the  prettiest  girls  of  the 
then  frontier  is  now  ruin.  Kaskaskia  is  no  more. 

"Sir,  when  the  waters  of  the  Mississippi,  generations 
hence,  are  traversed  by  carriers  of  commerce  from  all  parts 
of  the  world;  when  there  shall  live  west  of  the  Father  of 
Waters  a  people  greater  in  numbers  than  the  present  popu- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS 


31 


32  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

lation  of  the  United  States ;  when,  sir,  the  power  of  Eng 
land,  always  malevolent,  shall  have  waned  to  nothing,  and 
the  eagles  and  stars  of  our  national  arms  be  recognized 
and  honored  in  all  parts  of  the  globe;  when  the  old  men 
and  the  children  of  to-day  shall  have  been  gathered  to  their 
fathers  and  their  graves  have  been  obliterated  from  the 
face  of  the  earth,  Kaskaskia  will  still  remember  and  honor 
your  name.  Sir,  as  the  commercial  queen  of  the  West,  she 
welcomes  you  to  a  place  within  her  portals.  So  long  as 
Kaskaskia  exists  your  name  and  praises  shall  be  sung  by 
her." 

So  Governor  Edward  Coles,  executive  head  of  Illinois 
in  1825,  spoke  to  General  Lafayette  at  Kaskaskia  seventy- 
six  years  ago.  And  now  Kaskaskia  itself  is  removed  from 
the  face  of  the  earth.  Time  is  ruthless  and  man  a  child, 
building  houses  of  sand  on  a  shore  where  the  waves  always 
destroy. 

Kaskaskia  was  an  Indian  camping-place  prior  to  1673, 
and  for  many  decades  after  that  time.  Its  name  came  from 
the  Kaskaskia  tribe,  a  subdivision  of  the  principal  tribe  of 
the  teritory — the  L-in-ni-wek.  Cahokia  \vas  an  older  settle 
ment  than  ^askaskia,  but  the  latter  for  generations  was 
the  more  important  point.  Both  were  situated  close  by 
the  Mississippi  and  not  far  from  the  mouth  of  the  Mis 
souri,  directly  on  the  great  highways  of  the  early  traders 
and  hunters.  Their  climate  was  mild,  the  soil  productive 
and  the  vast  forests  full  of  game,  of  nut  and  fruit  bearing 
trees  and  of  vines.  For  years  after  their  permanent  settle 
ment,  both  Cahokia  and  Kaskaskia  were  protected  by  the 
guns  and  soldiers  of  Fort  Chartres.  About  this  fort  also 
grew  up  the  forgotten  towns  of  St.  Philip,  New  Chartres 
and  Prairie  du  Rocher.  In  1722,  at  Kaskaskia,  there  was 
erected  a  parish  church,  a  stone  residence  for  the  Jesuit 
priests  and  large  mills  and  storehouses.  In  proportion  to 
its  population  at  the  time  Kaskaskia  transacted  more  mer 
cantile  business  in  1722  than  Chicago  did  in  1860. 

Illinois  at  this  time  comprised  over  one-half  of  the 
present  territory  of  the  state  and  all  that  country  between 
the  Arkansas  and  the  forty-third  parallel  of  north  latitude, 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  33 

from  the  Mississippi  to  the  Rocky  Mountains.  It  included 
the  present  states  of  Missouri,  Kansas,  Iowa,  Nebraska 
and  parts  of  Arkansas  and  Colorado.  These  were  the  times 
when  the  resentful  Chickasaws,  happening-  one  winter 
morning  to  capture  several  distinguished  Frenchmen  then 
ruling  at  Kaskaskia — Artaguiette,  Vincennes,  Father 
Senat,  Tisne  and  young  Pierre  St.  Ange — drove  stakes 
into  the  ground  and  burned  their  captives  alive.  So,  later 
at  Kaskaskia,  a  white  commander,  taking  offense  at  a 
minor  crime  committed  by  a  negro  slave  (slaves  were  plen 
tiful  there),  ordered  him,  too,  to  be  burned  at  the  stake 
and  his  ashes  to  be  scattered  on  the  bosom  of  the  river. 
But,  generally  speaking,  life  was  peaceful  and  happy 
at  Kaskaskia.  The  settlers  recognized  but  one  church. 
The  architecture  of  their  houses  partook  of  the  simplicity 
of  those  who  dwelt  within.  The  house  was  a  single  story, 
surmounted  by  a  thatch  of  prairie  grass,  rested  upon  four 
posts,  whose  rough  sides  were  concealed  by  horizontal 
cross-ties,  and  whose  interstices  were  filled  in  with  clay  and 
straw  in  lieu  of  mortar.  The  main  entrance  was  protected 
by  a  primitive  porch  or  shed.  The  floors  were  made  of 
puncheons. 

The  agricultural  implements  were  wooden  plows, 
without  a  colter,  and  carts  without  iron.  The  people  vis 
ually  plowed  with  oxen,  which  were  yoked  by  the  horns 
rather  than  by  the  neck.  Horses  were  driven  tandem. 
Yet  thousands  of  acres  were  under  cultivation  and  yielded 
bountiful  crops.  Corn  was  raised  only  for  the  hogs  and 
for  hominy.  Butter  was  made  by  shaking  cream  in  a 
bottle,  or  by  breaking  it  in  a  bowl  with  a  spoon.  As  high 
as  4,000  sacks  of  flour  a  year  were  shipped  to  New  Orleans. 
At  the  end  of  mass  on  Sunday  there  were  always  games, 
cards,  idle  gossip  and  dancing,  the  latter  the  favorite  sport 
of  the  frontier.  A  year's  board  and  lodging  cost  merely 
two  months'  work  for  your  landlord — one  month  of  plow 
ing  and  one  month  of  harvesting. 

Yet  with  the  primitive  simplicity  of  their  lives  these 
pioneers  were  drunkards,  slaves  owners,  given  to  debauch 
ery,  cruel  and  unjust  to  the  Indians,  holding  a  woman's 

3 


34  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

will  as  light  as  thistle-down.     Kaskaskia  was  French  and 
really  did  not   have  a  so-called  high  moral   atmosphere 
until  after  the  Anglo-Kelt  came  into  possession  of  its  land. 
In  1766  the  French  built  for  the  protection  of  Kas 
kaskia  and  vicinity  a  fort,  which  cost  1,000,000  crowns,  or 
the  equivalent  of  about  $1,000,000  in  United  States  money. 
At  that  time  it  was  the  best-built  fort  in  North  America. 
It  was  from  this  fort  that  Neyon  de  Villiers  was  dispatched 
to  aid  in  overcoming  "M.  de  Wachenston"  (Washington), 
who  was  then  fighting  for  England  in  the  Ohio  country. 
It  was  in  sight  of  Kaskaskia  that  the   French   flag  last 
flapped  its  folds  on  the  North  American  continent,  and 
there  that  it  was  taken  down,  never  to  go  up  again,  the 
flag  of  England  temporarily  taking  its  place.     Here,  too, 
Pontiac,  the  great  Indian  chief,  breathed  his  last.     After 
the  uprising  of  his  band  and  allies  and  their  defeat  by  the 
whites,  Pontiac  paid  a  visit  to  his  old  friends  at  St.  Louis— 
Chouteau  and  St.  Ange.     Learning  that  a  large  party  of 
Indians  were  carousing  at  Cahokia  and  Kaskaskia,  Pon 
tiac  visited  them.     He  drank  deeply,  and  while  drunk  his 
death  was  planned.     One  Williamson,  an  English  trader, 
hired  a  strolling  Kaskaskia  Indian  for  a  barrel  of  whisky 
to  take  his  life.    This  he  did  by  stealing  up  behind  him  and 
burying  a  tomahawk  in  his  brains.     He  lay  on  the  spot 
where  he  had  fallen  until  St.  Ange,  hearing  of  his  end, 
claimed  the  body,  removed  it  to  St.  Louis  and  there  it  was 
buried.     At  Fort   Chartres,   October   10,   1765,   England 
formally  took  possession  of  the  Illinois  country.     At  that 
time  Kaskaskia  contained  a  population  of  700 ;  Prairie  du 
Rocher,  no;  New  Chartres,  220,  and  Cahokia,  450.     The 
mixed  character  of  the  population  at  the  time  is  illustrated 
by  the  record  of  a  marriage  of  a  French  soldier  at  Prairie 
du  Rocher  to  an  Englishwoman  by  a  French  priest  in  the 
British  province  of  Illinois.      The   soldier  was   from  the 
Spanish  city  of  St.  Louis. 

Phillip  Francois  de  Rastel,  Chevalier  de  Rocheblave,  a 
Frenchman  in  the  service  of  England,  was  in  command 
at  Kaskaskia  as  early  as  October,  1776.  In  1778  Kas 
kaskia  was  furnishing  supplies  and  munitions  of  war  to  the 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  85 

scattered  settlements  of  Kentucky  subject  to  Indian  raids. 
It  was  Colonel  George  Rogers  Clark,  who,  in  1777,  deter 
mined  on  seizing  the  then  Northwest  for  the  struggling 
thirteen  colonies.  His  spies  visited  Kaskaskia  that  year 
and  reported  that  the  place  could  be  captured.  On  the 
evening  of  July  4,  1778,  Colonel  Clark,  with  less  than  180 
soldiers,  was  within  three  miles  of  Kaskaskia.  His  object 
was  to  capture  the  town  and  Fort  Gage,  the  latter  having 
been  built  in  1736,  destroyed  by  fire  in  1766,  and  partially 
repaired  afterward.  The  night  of  July  4  Colonel  Clark 
captured  the  town  and  the  fort  without  shedding  a  drop  of 
blood.  To  the  conquered  inhabitants  he  gave  this  message 
from  Patrick  Henry: 

"Although  you  are  a  conquered  people,  and  as  such 
are  at  the  mercy  of  the  conqueror,  nevertheless  the  policy, 
no  less  than  the  desire,  of  the  American  government  is 
to  make  you  free,  and  if  I  can  have  surety  of  your  zeal 
and  attachment  to  the  American  cause  you  shall  imme 
diately  enjoy  the  privileges  of  government  and  your  prop 
erty  be  secured  to  you." 

It  was  at  Cahokia  that  Colonel  Clark  consummated 
treaties  with  twelve  powerful  and  hitherto  hostile  Indian 
tribes.  On  February  7,  1779,  the  inhabitants  of  Kaskaskia 
came  out  in  their  holiday  attire  to  bid  adieu  to  Colonel 
Clark  as  he  departed  on  the  expedition  to  recapture  Vin- 
cennes  from  the  British.  Father  Gibault  made  a  patriotic 
speech  and  "gave  all  the  soldiers  absolution." 

In  May  of  1779  Colonel  John  Todd  of  Kentucky 
became  the  first  American  governor  of  Illinois,  with  head 
quarters  at  Kaskaskia.  Supplies  were  not  always  plentiful 
in  the  Kaskaskia  country  at  that  time.  Witness  this  ex 
tract  from  the  letter  of  a  militia  captain,  describing  the 
condition  of  his  larder  after  a  long  siege  by  the  Indians: 
"We  are  now  able  to  drink  brandy,  taffia  and  wine,  and 
with  your  (Colonel  Clark's)  good  assistance,  whisky,  too, 
but  it  has  not  made  us  so  saucy  but  we  can  drink  all  the 
whisky  you  can  send  us."  It  was  at  Kaskaskia,  in  1780, 
that  Colonel  Moltin  de  la  Balme,  who  had  come  to  this 
country  with  Lafayette,  organized  an  expedition  for  the 


36  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

capture  of  Detroit.     He  was  killed  at  the  River  Aboite. 
Governor  St.  Clair  arrived  at  Kaskaskia  in  1790,  and  then 
St.  Clair  County  was  named  after  him.     Randolph  County 
was  created  in  1795  and  Kaskaskia  became  the  county  seat. 
Aaron  Burr  was  at   Kaskaskia  in    1806,   engaged  in  his 
great  scheme  of  forming  Mexico  into  an  independent  re 
public,  of  which  he  should  be  president.     His  arrest  the 
fall  of  that  year  "for  treasonable  practices"   put  an  end 
to  the  plan.     Disease  w^as  as  common  in  those  days  as 
now,   and   Kaskaskia   did   not  escape.      Malignant   fevers 
were  common.     A  prevalent  disease  was  what  was  called 
the  "fever  and  ague."    It  was  not,  however,  a  fatal  disease, 
and  generally  yielded  to  the  then  universal  remedies  of 
"tartar  emetic,  calomel  and  jalap  and  Peruvian  bark."    An 
other  disease  peculiar  to  these  times  was  the  "milk-sick," 
which,  it  was  claimed,  was  induced  by  drinking  the  milk 
or  eating  the  butter  or  meat  of  an  animal  affected  with 
poison.    The  sickness  was  generally  fatal  to  both  man  and 
beast.     The  first   Illinois   land   office   was   established   at 
Kaskaskia  in  1804.     The  inhabitants  of  the  town  at  that 
time  wore  dressed  skins  of  the  deer,  wolf  or  fox,  while 
those  of  the  buffalo  and  elk  supplied  them  with  covering 
for  their  feet  and  hands.     Their  log  cabins  were  destitute 
of  glass,  nails,  hinges  or  locks.     The  furniture  and  house 
hold  utensils  were  home-made.     Spoons  were  pewter  and 
knives  and  forks  iron.     Crimes  against  person,  property  or 
public  order  were  of  so  infrequent  occurrence  as  to  be 
practically  unknown.     Good  farm  land  sold  for  forty  cents 
an  acre.     The  women  manufactured  homespun  garments. 
A  "feast"  consisted  of  johnny  cake,  bacon,  bear  and  deer 
meat,  turkey  and  an  abundance  of  vegetables.     Whisky 
was  drunk  by  the  men,  women  and  children. 

Large  stores  existed  in  Kaskaskia  early  in  the  cen 
tury.  They  supplied  at  wholesale  or  retail  the  "villages 
of  St.  Louis,  St.  Genevieve  and  Cape  Girardeau."  A  heavy 
and  profitable  trade  was  carried  on  with  New  Orleans  and 
Pittsburg.  Transportation  was  by  oxen  overland,  or  flat 
barges  on  the  rivers.  The  first  lawyer  in  Illinois — John 
Rice  Jones— settled  in  Kaskaskia  in  1790.  It  was  at  Kas- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


38  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

kaskia  that  his  son,  Rice  Jones,  was  assassinated  in  1806. 
Isaac  Darnielle,  the  second  lawyer  in  the  state,  settled 
at  Cahokia.  Governor  Reynolds  said  of  him  that  "while 
he  was  never  married  according  to  law,  to  all  appearances 
he  was  never  without  a  wife  or  wives."  Nathaniel  Pope, 
the  father  of  Major-General  John  Pope,  settled  at  Kas- 
kaskia  in  1808.  William  Morrison,  a  relative  of  former 
Congressman  William  R.  Morrison,  was  also  a  resident 
of  Kaskaskia.  His  stone  residence  was  one  of  the  finest  in 
the  town.  Pierre  Hypolite  and  Francois  Menard  came  to 
Kaskaskia  in  1790  and  were  prominent  in  the  early  history 
of  the  state.  Looking  over  the  account  books  of  some  of 
the  early  merchants  of  the  town,  the  scale  of  prices  is 
found.  A  pound  of  coffee  or  sugar  or  a  quart  of  whisky 
cost  50  cents.  Lard  was  25  cents  a  pound  and  flour  $8  a 
barrel  Bohea  tea  was  66  2-3  cents  per  pound.  The  price 
of  calico  per  yard  was  50  cents ;  corn,  50  cents  a  bushel ; 
nails,  3ijcents  per  pound;  hams,  25  cents  per  pound. 
Governor  Edwards  had  saw  and  grist  mills  at  Kaskaskia 
and  stores.  He  was  the  foremost  merchant  of  his  day. 
The  first  pork-packing  .establishment  in  Illinois  was  estab 
lished  at  Kaskaskia.  The  first  General  Assembly  of  the 
state  met  there,  and  Pierre  Menard  was  president  of  the 
council.  One  doorkeeper  was  sufficient  for  both  bodies, 
and  all  the  members  were  entertained  at  one  tavern. 

The  legislators  at  Kaskaskia  determined  that  forgers 
should  be  punished  with  exposure  in  the  pillory  three 
hours ;  bigamy,  by  whipping  and  later  by  death ;  larceny, 
by  whipping;  Sabbath-breaking,  by  a  fine;  profanity,  by  a 
fine ;  drunkenness,  by  placing  in  the  stocks ;  dueling^  was 
called  murder.  Slaves  were  among  the  taxable  articles. 
A  reward  of  $50  was  paid  for  every  Indian  killed  in  white 
territory.  If  he  was  killed  in  his  own  land  the  reward 
was  increased  to  $100.  One  of  the  federal  judges  who 
presided  at  Kaskaskia  was  described  as  "a  correct,  honest 
man,  a  good  lawyer;  paid  his  debts  and  sung  David's 
psalms."  Cahokia  was  settled  in  1699.  Kaskaskia  was 
founded  in  1707,  was  half  a  century  older  than  Cincinnati 
and  had  passed  the  meridian  of  its  fame  and  into  the  deca- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  39 

dence  of  the  sere  and  yellow  leaf  before  Chicago  was  more 
than  a  spot.  In  its  best  days  the  population  did  not  exceed 
800  whites.  The  state  capital  was  removed  from  it  in  1821, 
and  it  ceased  to  be  the  county  seat  of  Randolph  County 
after  1847.  The  floods  of  1844  dealt  it  a  deadly  blow. 
For  over  half  a  century,  however,  it  was  the  metropolis  of 
the  upper  Mississippi  Valley,  and  during  this  period  it  was 
the  Mecca  of  all  explorers  and  the  focus  of  commerce  in 
the  Northwest  Territory.  Governor  Coles  and  General 
Lafayette  had  become  friends  in  France,  and  when  La 
fayette  returned  to  this  country  in  1825  he  was  persuaded 
to  visit  Kaskaskia.  The  legislature  extended  the  invita 
tion  and  appropriated  one-third  of  the  tax  receipts  of  that 
year  ($6,473)  f°r  the  General's  entertainment.  Lafayette 
came  from  St.  Louis  on  the  Natchez,  and  was  received 
at  the  residence  of  General  John  Edgar,  and  later  given 
a  sumptuous  dinner  at  the  tavern  of  Colonel  Sweet.  The 
entertainment  concluded  with  a  ball  at  the  stone  mansion 
of  William  Morrison. 

The  remorseless  Mississippi  has  now  practically  taken 
the  last  of  the  historic  ground  and  swept  it  as  silt  out  to 
the  gulf  and  the  ocean  beyond.  Where  all  these  great 
and  little  men  of  one  hundred  and  two  hundred  years  ago 
trod  and  planned  and  worked,  just  as  men  do  in  this  day, 
there  are  now  muddy  waters  and  quicksands.  Neverthe 
less  the  history  of  Kaskaskia  is  one  of  the  most  important 
chronicles  in  the  story  of  the  Northwest,  and  the  tale  of 
the  first  beginnings  of  the  republic. 

In  the  Legislature  at  that  time  appeared  Abraham 
Lincoln — the  incomparable — very  tall,  six  feet  four  inches, 
.awkward,  ungainly,  careless  in  dress  and  appearance,  en 
tirely  free  from  vanity,  averse  to  display,  void  of  self-assur 
ance,  and  serious  of  countenance.  Kind,  sincere,  earnest 
and  impressive  in  speech,  blessed  with  good  sense  and  pro 
verbially  sound  judgment,  intelligent,  ambitious  and  of 
acknowledged  sterling  integrity.  It  is  no  wonder  that,  thus 
equipped  in  that  arena,  when  wisdom  and  worth  were 
more  highly  prized  than  power  and  pelf,  Lincoln  wielded 
great  influence  in  his  party. 


40 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  41 

He  was  the  undisputed  leader  of  the  Whigs  during 
the  session,  while  Stephen  A.  Douglas,  well-built,  though 
but  five  feet  five  in  height,  with  a  massive  head,  covered 
with  curly  black  hair,  was  the  leader  of  the  Democrats. 

He  was  noted  for  sound  sense,  good  judgment,  great 
self-confidence,  a  remarkable  memory,  keen  perception, 
with  a  strong,  penetrating  voice.  His  manner  of  speaking 
was  earnest,  impassioned  and  effective.  As  a  Jacksonian 
Democrat  of  ability  and  energy,  he  was  ever  on  the  alert  to 
score  a  point  for  his  party. 

James  Shields  was  a  man  of  medium  height,  five  feet 
nine,  slight  in  build,  urbane,  witty,  bright,  intelligent,  reso 
lute  and  energetic.  In  dress  he  was  scrupulously  neat,  in 
manner  courteous,  frank  and  manly.  In  speaking,  he  was 
lucid,  forcible  and  fearless,  always  master  of  his  subject 
and  well  equipped  for  attack  or  defense.  It  would  be 
strange  if  such  a  charming  personality  did  not  soon  be 
come  one  of  the  most  popular  members  of  such  an  assem 
bly  of  truly  great  men.  He  was  a  well-read  lawyer,  thor 
oughly  versed  in  the  principles  of  law  and  equity,  and  was 
warmly  attached  to  his  profession,  which  determines  the 
criterions  of  right  and  wrong,  which  seeks  to  establish 
right  and  prevent  or  punish  wrong,  and  as  a  science  inves 
tigates  the  causes  of  existing  evils,  while  as  an  art  it  applies 
proper  remedies  therefor,  "whose  seat  is  the  bosom  of 
God,  and  whose  voice  is  the  harmony  of  the  world." 

Nearly  all  of  those  w7hose  names  are  hereinbefore 
mentioned  in  connection  with  the  annals  of  the  Prairie 
State  were  members  of  the  legal  profession.  The  republic 
in  a  great  measure  owes  its  existence  and  perpetuity  to 
lawyers,  much  as  carping  critics  have  unjustly  derided  this 
deservedly  honored  class  of  citizens,  from  whose  ranks  wise 
legislators  ever  have  been,  and  always  will  be,  recruited. 
None  can  be  so  well  prepared  to  amend  existing  laws, 
repeal  obnoxious  statutes  or  frame  new  and  desirable  en 
actments  as  members  of  the  legal  profession,  since,  hav 
ing  opportunities  to  discover  the  evil  that  affects  the  body 
politic,  they  possess  the  skill  to  suggest  the  necessary  rem 
edies. 


42  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  many  estimable  people,  and 
some  reputable  newspapers,  seem  to  think  it  smart  to  ridi 
cule  or  deride  lawyers,  while  they  pour  out  unstinted  praise 
at  the  feet  of  judges,  many  of  whom  never  were,  and  never 
will  be,  lawyers,  but  are  merely  skillful  politicians.  In 
early  days,  history  records  the  fact  that  colonial  governors 
of  this  country  complained  to  their  home  governments  of 
the  troubles  brought  about  by  a  class  of  men  who  had 
taken  up  the  study  of  Blackstone,  and  such  complaints 
are  fine  tributes  to  the  patriotism  of  colonial  lawyers. 
Every  lawyer  must  be  proud  to  belong  to  the  profession 
which  furnished  more  signers  of  the  Declaration  of  Inde 
pendence  than  all  others — lawyers  being  more  than  the 
majority  of  those  immortals. 

In  every  contest  that  has  arisen  since  1776,  in  peace 
and  in  war,  in  storm  and  in  battle,  lawyers  have  proven 
themselves  patriots  and  heroes.  In  the  War  of  1812  they 
addressed  their  fellow-citizens,  roused  their  enthusiasm, 
shouldered  the  musket  with  them,  or  were  elected  by  them 
to  lead  in  the  paths  of  glory,  which  too  often  led  but  to 
the  grave.  In  the  Mexican  War,  in  every  company  of  vol 
unteers,  lawyers  were  found — first  on  danger  line,  "in  bat 
tle's  stern  array."  No  regiment  of  volunteers  from  any 
state  can  be  named  that  participated  in  that  conflict  in 
which  at  least  a  score  of  lawyers  were  not  enrolled,  and 
whether  among  the  rank  or  file  or  elsewhere,  they  always 
did  their  level  best  and  were  second  to  none. 

In  the  Civil  War  the  influence  of  the  legal  profession 
was  the  greatest  of  all — in  fact,  greater  than  all  others 
combined.  Without  lawyers'  speeches  ranks  would  have 
been  thin  and  regiments  but  skeletons. 

Adjutant-generals'  reports  in  every  state  will  show 
that  over  a  hundred  lawyers  fought  for  the  integrity  of 
the  Union  to  one  banker,  capitalist  or  editor.  They  fought 
and  fell  on  many  an  ensanguined  field,  and  by  so  doing 
proved  their  fidelity  to  the  eternal  principles  of  right  which 
they  learned  as  students,  and  to  love  the  institutions  under 
which  they  lived,  to  maintain  which  and  transmit  to  future 
generations  many  of  them  poured  out  their  last  drop  of 
blood. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  43 

Peace  to  their  ashes !  Never  shall  their  memory  fade 
while  valor  and  patriotism  are  cardinal  virtues  of  Amer 
icans,  and  Liberty  has  devotees  in  the  Land  of  the  Free 
and  the  Home  of  the  Brave. 

Little  that  would  be  of  special  interest  to  readers  was 
accomplished  by  Shields  during  that  session  of  the  Legis 
lature.  Lincoln  and  Douglas  attacked  or  defended  as 
leaders,  while  Shields  was  one  of  Douglas'  most  active 
supporters,  yet  his  manner  was  so  agreeable  that,  while 
he  was  a  hard  hitter,  he  made  no  personal  enemies.  Com 
mittees  are  the  eyes  and  ears  of  all  legislative  assemblies. 
In  them  hard  workers  and  profound  thinkers  frequently 
distinguish  themselves,  though  some  of  them  are  seldom 
heard  on  the  floor.  In  committee,  measures  are  perfected 
for  presentation,  and  much  tact  and  wisdom  are  shown 
in  such  meetings,  of  which  no  note  is  taken  by  the  assem 
bly.  Yet  reputations  are  often  made  and  lost  in  commit 
tees.  Parliamentary  law,  as  well  as  political  sagacity,  is 
frequently  brought  into  play,  saving  a  good  measure  or 
defeating  a  bad  one.  It  was  as  a  shrewd  lawyer,  more 
than  as  a  politician,  that  Shields  distinguished  himself  dur 
ing  the  session  by  his  work  in  committee. 


CHAPTER     V. 


State  Auditor— How  He  Saved  the  State  Credit  and  Made  Political 
Enemies  Thereby — How  Lincoln  Attacked  Him  Anonymously, 
and  How  Miss  Todd,  the  Future  Mrs.  Lincoln,  and  Miss  Jayne, 
the  Future  Mrs.  Trumbull,  Also  Ridiculed  Him  Through  the 
Press  Anonymously — Lincoln's  Espousal  of  the  Paternity  of  the 
Articles  in  Question — His  Refusal  of  a  Retraction  Upon  Shields' 
Demand — Shields'  Challenge  of  Lincoln — Actions  of  His  and 
Lincoln's  Seconds — Intervention  of  Friends — Start  for  the  Place 
of  Meeting,  and  the  Sequel. 


The  next  office  which  Shields  held  was  that  of  state 
auditor  for  two  terms.    During  his  second  term  the  effects 


44  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

of  the  panic  of  1837  were  severely  felt  in  Illinois,  and  it  was 
only  by  Shields  insisting  upon  the  payment  of  taxes  in 
silver  or  gold  that  the  state  credit  was  maintained,  while 
that  of  many  other  states  \vas  ruined.  Much  credit  having 
resulted  to  him  and  the  Democracy  of  the  state  by  the 
wisdom  shown  in  adhering  to  this  rule,  the  Whigs  sought 
to  despoil  him  of  his  civic  honors  by  ridicule,  and  Lincoln 
led  the  attack  in  an  anonymous  letter,  dated  August  27, 
1842,  signed  "Rebecca  of  the  Lost  Townships." 

Before  writing  it  he  disclosed  his  purpose  to  Miss 
Todd,  Lincoln's  future  wife,  and  Miss  Jayne,  whom  Sen 
ator  Lyman  Trumbull  subsequently  married.  They  en 
couraged  him  in  his  project,  and  offered  to  lend  their  aid, 
which  offer  they  made  good  by  writing  one  letter  in  prose 
and  another  in  verse. 

Lincoln  had  the  columns  of  the  Springfield  Journal, 
a  Whig  newspaper,  at  his  disposal,  and  directed  the  letter 
to  "Mr.  Printer,"  and  had  it  published.  It  and  the  other 
two  letters,  as  well  as  all  the  correspondence  connected 
therewith  or  resulting  therefrom,  can  be  found  in  Hern- 
don's  real  Life  of  Lincoln,  which  is  in  three  volumes, 
now  out  of  print,  it  is  said,  because  his  son  Robert  pur 
chased  the  original  plates  and  had  them  destroyed.  It  is 
believed  that  his  object  in  so  doing  was  to  clear  up  some 
ancestral  points,  or  to  remove  a  cloud  therefrom,  as  well 
as  to  wipe  out  some  particulars  relating  to  the  duel  in 
question.  However,  those  that  desire  to  get  the  bottom 
facts  in  regard  to  these  particulars  can  do  so  by  applying 
at  the  public  libraries  of  most  of  the  large  cities,  in  which 
the  three  volumes  containing  Herndon's  entire  life  of  Lin 
coln  can  be  found.  Most  other  lives  of  Lincoln  are  mere 
parodies  on  his  real  life,  written  for  revenue  only  or  for  the 
purpose  of  hiding  or  apologizing  for  some  very  important 
facts  in  regard  to  his  ancestors,  or  events  in  his  own  career. 

The  style  of  the  first  letter  written  against  Shields  by 
Lincoln  alone  may  be  ascertained  from  the  following  ex 
tracts,  which  refer  to  a  conversation  between  Rebecca  and 
another  farmer:  "  'How  are  you,  Jeff?'  'Why,'  says  he, 
'I'm  mad  as  the  devil,  Aunt  'Becca.'  'What  about?'  says  I. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  45 

'Ain't  its  hair  the  right  color?'  'None  of  that  nonsense, 
Jeff;  there  ain't  an  honester  woman  in  the  Lost  Town 
ships.'  ' 

Her  husband  speaks  of  the  "damn  officers  of  state," 
for  requiring  taxes  to  be  paid  in  silver,  "that  Shields  may 
get  his  $2,400  a  year."  Denouncing  that  notice,  or  rule, 
the  husband  says :  "That's  a  lie ;  I  say,  it  is  a  lie.  Is  there 
anything  in  law  requiring  them  (collectors),  at  the  bidding 
of  James  Shields,  to  perjure  themselves?  Will  the  greedy 
gullet  of  the  penitentiary  be  satisfied  with  swallowing  him 
instead  of  all  of  them,  if  they  should  venture  to  obey 
him?  Why,  Shields  didn't  believe  the  story  himself;  it 
was  never  meant  for  the  truth.  If  it  was  true,  why  didn't 
Carl  Lynn  and  Carpenter  sign  it  as  well  as  Shields?  I 
say  it  is  a  lie,  and  not  a  well-told  one  at  that.  It  grins  like 
a  copper  dollar.  Shields  is  a  fool,  as  well  as  a  liar.  With 
him  truth  is  out  of  the  question,  and  as  for  getting  a  good, 
bright,  passable  lie  out  of  him,  you  might  as  well  try  to 
strike  fire  out  of  a  piece  of  tallow.  Shields  is  a  Whig,  and 
the  auditor  of  this  Locofoco — I  mean  Democratic — state. 
If  I  was  deaf  and  blind  I  could  tell  him  by  the  smell." 

Then  Lincoln  describes  a  fair  "where  married  women 
and  widows  and  all  the  gals  about  town  were  finickin' 
about  tied  tight  in  the  middle  and  puffed  out  at  both  ends, 
like  bundles  of  fodder  that  hadn't  been  stacked  yet,  but 
wanted  stackin'  pretty  bad,  and  fellows  were  bowin'  and 
scrapin'  and  conjurin'  about  'em."  They  wouldn't  let  no 
Democrats  in  for  fear  they  would  disgust  the  ladies  or 
scare  the  little  gals  or  dirty  the  floor.  I  looked  in  at  the 
window,  and  there  was  this  same  fellow  Shields  floatin' 
about  in  the  air,  without  heft  or  earthly  substance,  just 
like  a  lock  of  cat  fur  where  cats  had  been  fighting.  His 
very  features,  in  the  ecstatic  agony  of  his  soul,  spoke  aud 
ibly  and  distinctly :  Dear  girls,  it  is  distressing,  but  I  can 
not  marry  you  all.  Too  well  I  know  how  much  you  suffer; 
but  do,  do  remember  it  is  not  my  fault  that  I  am  so  hand 
some  and  so  interesting.  As  the  last  was  expressed  by  a 
most  exquisite  contortion  of  his  face,  he  seized  hold  of 
one  of  their  hands  and  squeezed  and  held  onto  it  about  a 


4(5  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

quarter  of  an  hour.  If  that  was  one  of  our  Democratic 
gals  in  the  Lost  Townships,  he'd  get  a  brass  pin  let  into 
him  about  up  to  the  head.  He's  no  Democrat.  Nobody 
but  a  Whig  could  make  such  a  conceited  dunce  of  himself. 
I'll  be  a  Democrat  if  it  turns  out  that  Shields  is  a  Whig. 

''Mr.  Printer,  let  me  know  whether  Shields  is  a  Whig 
or  a  Democrat.  It  may  help  to  send  the  present  hypocrit 
ical  set  to  where  they  belong  and  to  fill  the  places  they 
now  disgrace  with  men  who  will  do  more  work  for  less  pay 
and  take  on  fewer  airs  while  they  are  doing  it.  If  some 
change  for  the  better  is  not  made,  any  of  us  will  not  have 
a  cow  left  to  milk  or  a  calf's  tail  to  wring." 

Within  a  week  another  epistle  from  Aunt  Rebecca  ap 
peared,  written  by  Miss  Todd  and  Miss  Jayne.  The  clos 
ing  part  of  it  reads  as  follows : 

"You  say  that  Mr.  S.  is  offended  at  being  compared 
to  cat's  fur,  and  is  as  mad  as  a  March  hare  (that  ain't  fur) 
because  I  told  you  about  squeezin'.  Now,  I  want  you 
to  tell  Mr.  S.  that  rather  than  fight  I'll  make  an  apology, 
and  if  he  wants  personal  satisfaction  let  him  only  come 
here  and  he  may  squeeze  my  hand  as  hard  as  I  squeezed 
the  butter,  and  if  that  ain't  personal  satisfaction  I  can  only 
say  that  he  is  the  first  man  that  was  not  satisfied  with 
squeezin'  my  hand.  If  this  should  not  answer,  there  is 
one  thing  more  that  I  would  rather  do  than  get  a  lickin'. 
I  have  long  expected  to  die  a  widow,  but  as  Mr.  S.  is  rather 
good  looking  than  otherwise,  I  must  say  I  don.'t  care  if  we 
compromise  the  matter  by — really,  Mr.  Printer.  I  can't 
help  blushing,  but  I— it  must  come  out — I — but  widowed 
modesty — well,  if  I  must  I  must — wouldn't  he — maybe 
sorter  let  the  old  grudge  drop  if  I  was  to  consent  to — be — 
be — h-i-s  w-i-f-e?  I  know  he  is  a  fighting  man  and  would 
rather  fight  than  eat,  but  isn't  marryin'  better  than  fightin', 
though  it  does  sometimes  run  into  it?  But  I  don't  think, 
upon  the  whole,  that  I'd  be  such  a  bad  match,  neither ;  I'm 
not  over  sixty,  and  am  just  four  feet  three  in  my  bare  feet, 
and  not  much  more  around  the  girth,  and  as  for  color — 
I  wouldn't  turn  my  back  to  nary  a  gal  in  the  Lost  Town 
ships.  But,  after  all,  maybe  I'm  countin'  my  chickens 
before  they  are  hatched,  and  dreamin'  of  matrimonial  bliss, 
when  the  only  alternative  reserved  for  me  may  be  a  lickin'. 
Jeff  tells  me  that  the  way  those  fire-eaters  do  is  to  give 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  47 

the  challenged  party  a  choice  of  weapons,  etc.,  which  bein' 
the  case,  I'll  tell  you  in  confidence  that  I  never  fights 
with  anything  but  broomsticks  or  hot  water,  or  a  shovel 
ful  of  coals  or  some  such  thing,  the  former  of  which,  bein' 
somewhat  like  a  shillalah,  may  not  be  very  objectionable  to 
him.  I  will  give  him  choice,  however,  in  one  thing,  and 
thaHs  whether,  when  we  fight,  I  shall  wear  breeches  or  he 
petticoats,  for  I  presume  that  change  is  sufficient  to  place 
us  on  an  equality.  Yours,  etc.,  REBECCA." 

"P.  S. — Jist  say  to  your  friend,  if  he  concludes  to 
marry  rather  than  fight,  I  shall  only  enforce  one  condition 
—that  if  he  should  ever  happen  to  gallant  young  gals 
home  from  our  house  of  nights,  he  must  not  squeeze  their 
hands." 

These  ladies  wrote  poetry,  signed  "Cathleen,"  in 
which  Shields  is  spoken  of  as  "The  pride  of  the  North 
from  Emerald  Isle,"  and  they  wrote  of  his  "soft-blarnied 
store"  as  "relics  of  yore."  Shields  was  made  the  object  of 
merriment  and  ridicule  on  every  side.  When  Shields  de 
manded  the  name  of  the  author  of  the  letters,  the  editor 
consulted  Lincoln,  who  told  the  editor  of  the  Journal  "to 
give  his  name  and  say  nothing  about  the  ladies." 

Shields  wrote  Lincoln,  and  gave  the  note  to  Gen 
eral  Whiteside  to  deliver  to  Lincoln,  who,  he  was  informed, 
was  the  author  of  the  article  in  question,  requesting 
him  to  retract  the  offensive  allusions  contained  in  said 
articles  in  relation  to  his  private  character.  Lincoln  re 
fused  to  answer  the  first  note,  claiming  that  it  contained 
a  menace.  Shields  wrote  another,  disavowing  any  inten 
tion  to  menace,  and  requesting  a  retraction  of  the  offensive 
matter  in  relation  to  his  private  character.  Lincoln  re 
fused  to  answer  unless  the  first  note  -was  withdrawn. 

Shields  then  chose  Whiteside  as  his  second,  who 
found  Lincoln  in  an  adjoining  circuit,  forewarned  of  the 
challenge.  Lincoln  chose  broadswords,  insisting  upon 
their  being  of  the  same  size  in  all  respects,  and  since  duel 
ing  was  forbidden  by  law  in  Illinois,  both  parties  and  their 
seconds  started  for  Missouri.  Lincoln's  friends  suggested 
leaving  the  matter  to  four  friends  for  settlement.  Shields 


48  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

declined  to  leave  it  to  any  other  than  the  friend  he  had 
selected  to  stand  by  him  on  that  occasion.  The  friends 
of  both  parties,  however,  withdrew  the  papers  temporarily, 
so  that  Lincoln's  friends  could  explain,  when  they  ex 
plained  fully,  without  Shields'  knowledge,  who  refused  to 
accede  to  the  arrangement  until  his  three  friends  declared 
the  apology  sufficient. 

Lincoln  abandoned  his  defense  of  the  ladies,  and  said : 
"I  did  write  the  Lost  Townships  letter  of  the  2cl  instant, 
but  had  no  participation  in  any  form  in  any  other  article. 
I  had  no  intention  of  injuring  your  personal  or  private 
character,  or  offending  you  as  a  man  or  a  gentleman,  and 
I  did  not  then  think,  and  do  not  now  think,  that  that  ar 
ticle  could  produce,  or  has  produced,  that  effect  against 
you,  and  had  I  anticipated  such  an  effect  I  would  have 
forborne  to  write  it.  And  I  will  add  that  your  conduct 
toward  me,  so  far  as  I  know,  had  always  been  gentlemanly, 
and  that  I  had  no  personal  grudge  against  you  and  no 
cause  for  any." 

Shields  certainly  had  nothing  to  blush  for  in  this  pro 
ceeding.  No  gentleman  of  spirit  of  that  day  of  dueling 
could  obtain  satisfaction  in  any  other  manner  from  one 
who  had  reflected  on  his  character  and  upon  demand  had 
neglected  or  refused  to  apologize  or  retract.  To  mutely 
submit  to  such  ridicule  as  was  contained  in  those  articles 
would  be  to  play  the  coward.  Even  in  our  day  and  hour, 
what  public  officer  of  equal  importance  would  tamely  sub 
mit  to  be  told  that  he  should  feed  "the  greedy  gullet  of 
the  penitentiary,"  and  to  have  his  rules  denounced  as  re 
quirements  "to  commit  perjury."  To  be  called  "a  fool 
as  well  as  a  liar"  and  to  have  it  said  "truth  with  him  was 
out  of  the  question,"  and  to  have  it  circulated  through 
the  press  that  his  personal  habits  were  such  that  the 
writer  was  justified  in  saying,  "If  I  was  deaf  and  blind  I 
could  tell  him  by  the  smell,"  were  things  that  no  spirited 
man  would  submit  to.  He  and  his  associates  were  ac 
cused  of  filling  places  that  they  disgraced,  and  of  "taking 
on  airs"  at  a  fair  that  they  would  not  be  admitted  to,  "for 
fear  they  would  disgust  the  ladies,  or  scare  the  little  gals,  or 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  49 

dirty  the  floor."  Shields  was  depicted  as  "floatin'  about 
in  the  air,  without  the  heft  or  earthly  substance,  just  like  a 
lock  of  cat  fur  where  cats  had  been  fighting,"  and  to  have 
it  said  that  "nobody  but  a  Whig  could  make  such  a  con 
ceited  dunce  of  himself"  was  anything  but  pleasant. 

No  one  would  fail  to  demand  satisfaction  from  the 
author  of  such  ridicule  and  reflections,  or  could  avoid 
feeling  hurt  to  find  that  they  emanated  from  Lincoln  and 
his  lady  friends.  How  unjust  and  unprovoked  they  were 
appears  from  Lincoln's  letter  on  the  subject  when,  writing 
to  Shields,  he  was  compelled  to  admit  that  "your  conduct 
toward  me,  so  far  as  I  know,  had  always  been  gentlemanly. 
I  had  no  personal  grudge  against  you  and  no  cause  for 
any." 

It  was  well  known  that  Lincoln  was  to  marry  Miss 
Todd,  whom  he  had  abandoned  or  shunned  on  the  day 
set  for  their  wedding,  about  a  year  and  a  half  previous, 
and  when  Shields  learned  through  his  second  that  she  and 
Miss  Jayne  had  written  some  of  the  letters,  of  which  Lin 
coln  had  assumed  the  authorship,  Shields  promptly  with 
drew  his  challenge  and  accepted  the  explanation  hereto 
fore  referred  to. 

Many  imagined  that  Lincoln's  great  reach  and  his 
requirements  in  regard  to  the  size  and  length  of  the  swords 
to  be  used,  and  other  precautions  taken  by  him,  would 
have  secured  his  safety  in  the  event  of  the  duel,  but  since 
Shields,  before  he  left  Ireland,  was  a  good  swordsman,  and 
had  taught  fencing  in  Quebec  sixteen  years  before,  and 
all  through  life  claimed  that  he  feared  to  face  no  man 
with  the  sword,  the  result  of  the  duel  would  be  apt  to 
have  been  different  from  that  anticipated,  based,  as  it  was, 
upon  the  disparity  in  size  of  the  combatants. 

Merriman,  Lincoln's  second,  as  well  as  Whiteside, 
Shields'  representative,  concede  Shields'  bravery  and  high 
sense  of  honor  shown  thus  early,  when  he  may  have  been 
supposed  by  people  in  general  to  have  been  only  a  carpet 
knight. 

All  that  Herndon,  Lincoln's  real  historian,  could  in 
duce  Lincoln  to  say  of  this  duel  is  that  Lincoln  was  will- 

4 


50  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

ing  to  forget  the  duel  with  Shields.  In  after  years  he  sel 
dom,  if  ever,  referred  to  it.  Herndon  says:  "In  1858,  in 
the  Eastern  states,  I  was  often  asked  for  an  account  of  the 
duel,  and  told  Lincoln  of  it."  "If  all  the  good  things  I 
have  ever  done,"  he  said  regretfully,  "are  remembered  as 
long  and  as  well  as  my  scrape  with  Shields,  it  is  plain  I 
shall  not  be  forgotten." 


CHAPTER     VI. 


Shields  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Illinois — His  Illustrious  Asso 
ciates — Distinguished  Practitioners  and  Leaders  of  the  Bar  of 
Illinois — Appointed  Commissioner  of  the  General  Land  Office  at 
Washington  by  President  Polk — His  Plan  for  an  Irish  Colony 
in  Iowa — Resignation  as  Land  Commissioner. 


Shields'  unparalleled  success  as  a  financier  during  the 
two  terms  that  he  was  auditor  of  the  state  of  Illinois  ren 
dered  him  so  popular  that  on  August  16,  1843,  tne  £ov" 
ernor  of  the  state  appointed  him  justice  of  the  Supreme 
Court  of  the  state  of  Illinois,  Stephen  A.  Douglas  having 
resigned  therefrom  June  28,  1843.  Justice  Semple's  term 
expired  August  16,  1843,  and  Shields  was  appointed  to  fill 
the  vacancy.  By  law  the  terms  of  the  justices  of  the  court 
expired  at  the  end  of  the  next  succeeding  session  of  the 
Legislature.  On  February  17,  1845,  tne  General  Assem 
bly  elected  Shields  justice  of  that  court.  His  commission 
was  dated  February  18,  and  his  resignation  .therefrom 
bears  date  April  2,  1845.  His  associates  during  the  dif 
ferent  portions  of  the  terms  that  he  was  on  the  Supreme 
bench  were  William  Wilson,  Samuel  D.  Lockwood, 
Thomas  C.  Browne,  Thomas  Ford,  Sydney  Breese,  Wal 
ter  B.  Scates,  Samuel  H.  Treat,  John  D.  Caton,  Richard 
M.  Young,  Jesse  B.  Thomas,  Gustavus  P.  Koerner  and 
Norman  H.  Purple. 

The  following  are  a  few  of  the  great  lawyers  who 
practiced  at  the  bar  when  Shields  was  on  the  Supreme 
bench :  Abraham  Lincoln,  Lvman  Trumbull,  E.  B.  Wash- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  51 

burne,  John  M.  Palmer,  J.  A.  McDougall,  O.  H.  Brown 
ing,  E.  D.  Baker,  who,  with  the  exception  of  Lincoln,  be 
came  United  States  senators  of  different  states,  J.  J.  Har- 
din,  J.  Butterfield,  J.  Young  Scammon,  B.  C.  Cook,  Ste 
phen  T.  Logan,  O.  Peters,  H.  O.  Morrison,  D.  J.  Baker, 
J.  C.  Conkling,  C.  Oilman,  N.  Bushnell,  W.  A.  Minshall, 
VV.  F.  Bryan,  O.  C.  Pratt,  B.  S.  Edwards,  N.  B.  Judd,  J. 
Gillespie,  C.  S.  Hempstead,  W.  H.  Underwood,  Grant 
Goodrich,  D.  A.  Smith,  Josiah  Lamborn,  Isaac  N.  Arnold, 
Patrick  Ballengall,  A.  T.  Bledsoe,  C.  Spring,  William 
Thomas  and  George  Manierre. 

The  students  of  the  history  of  Illinois  and  sister  states, 
as  well  as  of  the  nation,  are  familiar  with  many  of  these 
names.  In  peace  and  in  war  they  rank  high.  As  framers 
of  constitutions,  judges  of  federal  and  state  courts,  organ 
izers  of  the  Republican  party — one  of  the  greatest  in 
America — during  Lincoln's  administration,  as  scholars, 
orators,  legislators  and  statesmen  of  renown,  no  state  in 
the  Union  at  that  time,  or  since,  had  greater  men.  They 
were  hard  students,  profound  thinkers  and  honest  public 
servants. 

It  was  by  no  chance — nor  by  family  influence,  wealth 
or  lineage — that  Shields  attained  such  rank  and  acquired 
such  eminence  among  associates  whose  names  are  immor 
tal,  and  whose  words  and  deeds  will  illume  historic  pages 
for  all  time. 

It  cannot  be  said  that  there  was  anything  of  national 
importance  in  Justice  Shields'  decisions  while  on  the  Su 
preme  bench.  That  he  ranked  high  as  a  justice,  that  he 
was  industrious,  painstaking,  impartial  and  strictly  honest, 
never  has  been  doubted.  More  than  that  no  judge  can 
be.  He  wore  the  ermine  without  a  stain,  and  resigned  the 
highest  position  which  a  lawyer  can  hold  amid  the  regrets 
of  his  associates  on  the  bench  and  of  the  great  lawyers  of 
the  state. 

At  the  bar,  as  a  legislator  in  the  House,  as  a  financier 
in  the  auditor's  office  and  on  the  bench,  he  had  often  been 
weighed  in  the  balance  and  never  found  wanting.  His 
extraordinary  career  had  outleaped  the  boundaries  of  the 


52  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

state  and  attracted  the  attention  of  the  nation.  His 
sphere  of  usefulness  seemed  to  be  unlimited.  Without 
doubt  many  of  his  acquaintances  often  wondered  if  this 
marvelous  man  should  prove  "their  morning's  envy  and 
their  evening's  sigh."  Would  his  sun  of  prosperity  never 
set,  or  would  Fortune,  which  seemed  to  have  adopted  him 
for  her  son,  prove  a  fickle  goddess?  Was  Illinois  broad 
enough  to  furnish  scope  for  his  comparatively  limitless 
capacity  and  extraordinary  abilities?  Would  he  be  called 
upon  to  adorn  the  highest  elective  office  of  the  state,  or 
what  would  become  of  him  in  the  future?  were,  without 
question,  the  thoughts  of  many  of  his  countrymen. 

The  fact  is  that  Shields  resigned  from  the  Supreme 
bench  to  accept  from  President  Polk  the  commissioner- 
generalship  of  the  land  office  at  Washington.  While  fill 
ing  that  position  he  had  nearly  every  section  of  land  in 
Iowa  bored,  tested  and  examined,  with  a  view  of  estab 
lishing  an  Irish  colony  in  that  state,  knowing  that  his 
countrymen  were  good  farmers  in  Ireland,  and  that  they 
longed  to  be  free  from  landlords  and  to  eat  the  bread 
of  independence,  raised  by  the  sweat  of  their  brow,  upon 
farms  of  their  own. 

Shields  was  one  of  the  pioneers  in  Irish  colonization 
in  America,  which,  unfortunately,  Archbishop  Hughes  ot 
New  York  throttled  at  its  birth,  through  ignorance  and 
short-sightedness,  and  thereby  left  the  Irish  emigrants,  in 
many  cases,  the  prey  of  the  vile  and  designing  in  large 
cities,  to  eke  out  a  miserable  existence  in  unhealthy  tene 
ments,  and  often  to  be  consigned  to  paupers'  graves. 

My  recollection  is  that  it  was  after  Shields  had  served 
his  six-year  term  as  one  of  the  senators  from  the  state  of 
Illinois  that  he  spent  some  time  in  the  city  of  New  York, 
endeavoring  to  organize  an  Irish  colony  to  settle  in  Iowa. 
He  had  discussed  the  matter  with  most  of  the  prominent 
Irish  Catholics  in  the  East,  \vho  approved  of  it,  and  had 
succeeded  in  interesting  several  zealous,  intelligent  Cath 
olic  priests,  and  held  meetings  from  time  to  time  in  their 
parishes.  When  matters  had  progressed  so  far  that  prac 
tical  steps  were  to  be  inaugurated  to  fix  the  time  of  the 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  53 

departure  of  a  committee  of  investigation  to  go  West  with 
the  General  and  others  to  select  a  location  and  devise 
ways  and  means  to  carry  on  the  work,  a  meeting-  was  held 
in  the  basement  of  one  of  the  churches.  Many  of  those 
present  gave  their  views,  the  parish  priest  included,  and 
the  General  furnished,  as  it  seems,  much  of  the  informa 
tion  desired,  and  made  such  a  favorable  impression  that 
everything  was  ripe  for  action,  and  bespoke  success,  when, 
to  the  surprise  of  all,  a  man  stepped  upon  the  platform, 
and,  removing  his  disguise,  he  proved  to  be  Archbishop 
Hughes.  He  at  once  frowned  upon  and  denounced  the 
undertaking  in  unstinted  terms.  He  was  very  severe  in 
censuring  the  priest,  who,  he  said,  was  advising  his  par 
ishioners  and  other  good  Catholics  to  imperil  their  faith 
by  emigrating  to  the  Western  wilds,  where  they  would  be 
without  the  benefit  of  clergy,  in  danger  of  losing  their 
souls,  as  well  as  exposing  their  bodies  to  the  privations 
of  frontier  life.  He  practically  broke  up  the  meeting  and 
prevented  others  being  held.  He  was  very  careful  in  his 
remarks  not  to  reflect  upon  the  motives  of  General  Shields, 
who  spoke  to  the  Archbishop  as  he  descended  from  the 
platform,  and  said,  in  substance,  that  he  regretted  exceed 
ingly  to  notice  the  failure  of  his  grace's  sight,  whereupon 
the  Archbishop  remarked  :  "I  was  not  aware  that  my  sight 
was  failing."  "It  was  quite  evident  to  me,"  said  the  Gen 
eral,  "and  to  many  of  the  audience  that  you  can't  see 
the  length  of  your  nose,  otherwise  you  would  not  have  de 
livered  the  address  that  you  did,  whereby  you  have  frus 
trated  my  hopes  and  that  of  others  for  the  present,  and 
doomed  many  of  your  deluded  followers  in  temporal  affairs 
to  be  hewers  of  wood  and  drawers  of  water  during  their 
lives,  and  to  leave  their  children  without  a  reasonable  hope 
of  success  in  the  future.  You  cannot  prevent  some  of 
these  people  from  getting  homes  in  the  fertile  \Vest  and 
becoming  independent  there.  They  will  go  there  singly, 
or  in  small  groups,  in  preference  to  huddling  here  in  great 
numbers  to  starve.  They  will  go  where  there  are  no  Cath 
olic  churches,  and  if  other  archbishops  and  bishops  are  as 
narrow  as  you  are  they  will  be  left  without  priests  or 


54  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

churches,  but  that  will  be  your  fault,  not  theirs.  No 
general  sends  a  corporal's  guard  into  an  enemy's  coun 
try,  but  he  sends  regiments  and  brigades,  able  to  protect 
themselves  and  attack  their  enemies,  and  thereby  merits 
success.  Like  him,  I  would  take  a  colony,  or  advise  one 
of  a  hundred  or  more  heads  of  families,  to  settle  in  a  county 
in  the  beautiful  state  of  Iowa,  along  the  banks  of  some 
beautiful  stream,  on  as  good  land  as  the  sun  ever  shone 
upon,  which  they  can  have  for  almost  nothing,  under  the 
homestead  law,  which  I  helped  to  pass.  It's  as  free  as  the 
air  to  those  who  have  the  enterprise  to  go  and  take  it  up. 
Think  you  such  a  colony  would  fail,  after  their  cottages 
are  built,  to  erect  a  church  on  the  highest  point  in  their 
midst,  and  to  fit  up  a  school  in  the  basement?  If  you  have 
any  doubts  on  the  subject,  I  haven't  the  slightest.  They 
would  thereby  not  only  benefit  themselves,  but  they  would 
prove  benefactors  to  your  poorly-paid  and  apparently  half- 
fed  curates,  one  of  whom  they  would  invite  to  come  and 
dwell  in  their  midst  as  their  honored  parish  priest.  You, 
nor  no  other  sensible  man,  can  say  truthfully  that  such 
a  plan  is  not  feasible,  and  that  if  carried  out  it  would  im 
peril  the  faith  of  those  who  engaged  in  it.  The  trouble 
is  you  and  your  subordinates  think  you  build  churches, 
but  you  do  not,  and  never  did  to  my  knowledge.  The 
people,  the  parishioners,  the  business  men,  the  mechanics, 
the  laborers  and  hired  girls,  with  their  savings,  build  them, 
and  no  others." 

Thomas  D'Arcy  McGee,  the  eminent  poet,  scholar 
and  statesman,  I  believe,  was  present  at  that  meeting.  It 
is  well  known  that  he  was  one  of  the  strongest  advocates 
of  colonization  about  that  time,  and  would  have  succeeded 
but  for  Archbishop  Hughes'  opposition  thereto.  While 
the  archbishop  was  a  great  patriot,  and,  at  Lincoln's  re 
quest,  during  the  rebellion,  went  to  France  and  materially 
assisted  in  preventing  intervention  by  that  nation,  yet  he 
was  not  omniscient,  and,  like  other  archbishops,  erred  in 
temporal  affairs,  as  many  believe  some  have  done,  when 
'tis  said  that  they  have  meddled  in  politics. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  55 


CHAPTER     VII. 


Resignation  as  Land  Commissioner — Commission  as  Brigadier-Gen 
eral — Assigned  to  Command  the  Illinois  Regiments — Transfer  from 
Taylor  to  Scott — At  Cerro  Gordo  a  Grapeshot  Passes  Through 
His  Body — Extraordinary  Means  Adopted  to  Save  His  Life — 
Irish  Surgeon  and  French  Doctor  Push  a  Silk  Handkerchief 
on  a  Ramrod  Through  His  Right  Lung  and  Out  of  His  Back 
Near  the  Spine. 


The  language  of  Shields'  resignation  as  land  commis 
sioner  proclaims  the  soldier.  It  stated  that  he  desired  to 
assist  in  the  Mexican  War  "in  the  field."  From  which 
it  was  evident  that  he  was  eager  for  the  fray  and  that  his 
idea  of  a  volunteer's  duty  differed  materially  from  that  of 
a  sutler's.  He  had  never  been  in  the  public  service — state 
or  national — for  revenue  only. 

On  July  i,  1846,  he  was  commissioned  a  brigadier- 
general  and  assigned  to  the  command  of  the  Illinois  regi 
ments.  During  that  war  he  served  respectively  under  Gen 
erals  Taylor,  Wool  and  Scott,  but  it  was  under  the  latter 
that  he  Avon  most  of  his  laurels. 

Wilcox,  in  his  history  of  the  Mexican  War,  says: 

"General  Taylor,  on  August  17,  1846,  organized  the 
twelve-month  volunteers  into  divisions  and  brigades,  pre 
paratory  to  moving  on  Monterey.  The  second  division 
was  commanded  by  Major-General  Robert  Patterson; 
First  Brigade,  Brigadier-General  James  Shields,  two  regi 
ments  afoot,  Illinois  and  Missouri ;  Second  Brigade,  Briga 
dier-General  Gideon  J.  Pillow,  two  regiments  afoot  and 
one  of  cavalry,  all  of  Tennessee ;  Third  Brigade,  Brigadier- 
General  John  A.  Quitman,  three  regiments  afoot,  one  of 
Alabama,  one  of  Georgia,  one  of  Mississippi,  and  the  Bal 
timore  and  Washington  battalion. 


56  LIFE     OF     GEN,    SHIELDS 


GEN.    SHIELDS    IN    MEXICO. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  57 

"On  the  27th  of  October  the  Mexican  garrison  evacu 
ated  Tampico  and  General  Taylor  ordered  Brigadier- 
General  James  Shields  to  proceed  to  that  place,  and  upon 
his  arrival  to  assume  command. 

"General  Scott  arrived  at  Tampico  February  15,  1847, 
and  instructed  General  Patterson  after  the  order  in  which 
his  troops  should  be  embarked  for  Lobus  Island,  prepara 
tory  for  the  attack  of  Vera  Cruz. 

"Quitman's  division,  composed  of  Shields'  brigade  of 
two  regiments — New  York  and  South  Carolina  volunteers 
—and  Lieutenant-Colonel  S.  E.  Watson's  brigade,  in 
which  were  the  Second  Pennsylvania  Volunteers,  and  a 
detachment  of  the  United  States  marines,  moved  on  the 
morning  of  the  8th  of  August  from  Pueblo  toward  the 
city  of  Mexico." 

THE  BLOODLESS  VICTORY  OF  VERA  CRUZ. 

On  the  ist  of  January,  1847,  General  Scott  arrived  at 
the  Brazos  and  began  to  collect  his  troops  for  the  invasion. 
He  had  orders  to  withdraw  from  General  Taylor's  column 
four  thousand  regulars,  and  ten  new  regiments,  which 
had  been  recently  voted  by  Congress,  were  to  be  raised  and 
sent  forward  to  him  with  all  dispatch.  General  Scott  ar 
rived  on  the  6th  of  March  in  the  steamship  Massachusetts 
off  Vera  Cruz. 

Major-General  Patterson  had  under  his  orders  Briga 
dier-Generals  Quitman,  Pillow  and  Shields.  On  the  night 
of  the  1 8th  the  trenches  were  opened  and  taken  possession 
of  by  the  troops.  On  the  22(1  General  Scott  formally  sum 
moned  the  city  to  surrender.  To  his  summons  a  polite 
reply  w^as  returned  by  General  Morales,  the  commandant 
of  both  city  and  castle,  to  the  effect  that  he  meant  to  de 
fend  himself  to  the  last  extremity.  General  Scott,  at  a 
quarter  past  four  that  afternoon,  ordered  the  mortar  bat 
teries  to  open  fire  upon  the  city,  which  was  done  with 
much  spirit  and  effect.  The  navy,  now  in  command  of 
Commodore  Perry,  took  up  a  position  within  effective 
range  of  the  city,  and  poured  in  its  fire  also.  Bringing 
themselves  within  a  mile  of  the  castle  and  city  walls,  their 


58  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

fire  was  very  effective.  The  enemy  opened  fire  with  all 
his  batteries  that  would  bear  upon  the  attacking  line  and 
the  fleet,  and  began  to  throw  at  least  shell  for  shell.  The 
castle  was  armed  with  some  heavy  mortars,  and  now  and 
then  threw  a  shell  of  immense  size  and  destructive  force. 

With  the  aid  of  heavy  artillery,  landed  from  the  navy 
and  ably  handled,  assisted  by  our  artillery,  it  was  about  2 
o'clock  p.  m.,  on  the  28th,  when  the  enemy's  batteries  all 
ceased,  except  now  and  then  a  random  shot.  The  city  was 
beaten,  and  on  the  same  afternoon  we  had  the  satisfaction 
of  seeing  a  white  flag  pass  into  General  Scott's  camp.  By 
the  aid  of  our  glasses  we  could  see  that  both  the  forts 
abreast  of  us  and  with  which  we  had  had  such  hot  work 
were  completely  demolished,  the  guns  dismounted  and  the 
walls  knocked  into  a  heap  of  ruin,  and  that  our  efforts  at 
breaching  the  city  walls  had  been  successful  beyond  our 
expectations.  General  Morales,  being  unwilling  to  surren 
der  himself  a  prisoner  on  parole,  made  his  escape  with  the 
commandant  of  militia  on  the  night  of  the  25th  in  a  small 
boat,  devolving  the  command  on  General  Landero.  Thus 
was  achieved  what  has  been  called  the  "bloodless  victory'7 
of  Vera  Cruz.  Our  army  lost  in  killed  only  ten  persons,  in 
cluding  those  who  died  of  their  wounds;  the  navy  lost  in 
its  battery  nine  persons  killed,  including  one  who  died  of 
his  wounds,  making  a  total  of  nineteen,  while  the  enemy 
estimated  his  loss  at  a  thousand  souls  in  killed  and 
wounded,  most  of  them  killed,  as  is  always  the  case  in 
artillery  contests. 

The  battle  of  Cerro  Gordo  was  hotly  contested.  Wil- 
cox,  in  his  history  of  the  Mexican  War,  gives  an  interest 
ing  account  of  the  battle,  and  some  of  the  preliminaries 
as  well  as  the  internal  dissensions  that  prevailed  at  the 
city  of  Mexico.  He  says  that  after  the  defeat  of  the  Mex 
icans  at  the  battle  of  Buena  Vista,  Santa  Anna  and  his 
troops  retreated  about  thirty  miles,  where  he  learned  of 
factional  disputes  in  the  city  of  Mexico  and  elsewhere,  as 
to  which  party  should  control  the  government.  Deputa 
tions  of  rival  parties  waited  upon  him  as  he  approached 
the  capital,  endeavoring  to  persuade  him  to  take  sides,  but 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


59 


60  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

finally  the  passions  that  their  contentions  had  aroused  were 
subdued  and  a  compromise  was  effected,  after  which  the 
Polkas  and  the  Puras  stacked  their  arms.  A  Te  Deum 
was  sung  in  the  Guadelupe  church  in  thanks  to  the  Al 
mighty  for  the  victory  won  at  Buena  Vista.  At  night  a 
Congressional  committee  waited  upon  him  to  administer 
the  oath  of  office,  that  he  might  again  exercise  the  func 
tions  of  president,  and  the  following  morning,  accompa 
nied  by  a  brilliant  staff,  and  escorted  by  the  Hussars,  he 
entered  the  national  capital. 

All  eyes  were  turned  eastward.  Vera  Cruz  had  suc 
cumbed  to  the  enemy,  who  must  be  met  and  defeated,  or 
the  capital  itself  would  be  lost.  The  troops  from  the 
north,  as  they  descended  into  the  valley,  bore  off  to  the 
east  and  marched  toward  Vera  Cruz,  without  passing 
through  the  city,  and  Santa  Anna  did  not  tarry  there,  but, 
with  an  energy  exciting  the  surprise  and  admiration  of  his 
countrymen,  hurried  the  troops  garrisoning  the  city  (the 
National  Guards)  from  Pueblo  and  from  other  parts  of 
the  republic  down  toward  the  coast,  to  be  halted  at  Cerro 
Gordo.  Of  the  troops  from  the  north,  the  brigade  of 
General  Vasquez  was  composed  of  four  light  corps  and 
the  flying  artillery;  General  Ampudia's,  of  the  Third, 
Fourth,  Fifth  and  Eleventh  of  the  line;  the  cavalry  under 
General  Juvera,  of  the  Fifth  and  Ninth  Morelia  and  Cora- 
ceros.  Of  infantry  there  were  4,000;  cavalry,  1,500;  artil 
lery,  150;  in  all,  5.650.  Active  preparations  for  the  cam 
paign  continued.  Troops  marching  from  the  capital  and 
Puebla  to  reinforce  those  on  the  road  to  Vera  Cruz  moved 
by  brigades,  and  expeditiously,  for  it  was  important  to 
seize  points  of  natural  strength,  capable  of  good  defense, 
and  there  was  but  little  time  to  utilize  the  skill  of  engi 
neers. 

On  April  2,  Santa  Anna,  President  of  Mexico,  set  out 
from  the  capital  with  his  headquarters,  the  executive  power 
ad  interim  having  been  confided  to  General  Anaya  by  the 
National  Congress.  He  had  chosen  Cerro  Gordo,  on  the 
Vera  Cruz  road,  twenty  or  twenty-five  miles  in  advance 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  61 

of  Jalapa,  famous  during  the  War  of  Independence,  as  the 
spot  to  meet  and  turn  back  the  advance  of  Scott. 

He  reached  and  established  provisionally  his  head 
quarters  at  the  hacienda  of  Encero,  April  5th,  six  miles 
below  Jalapa,  on  the  road  to  Vera  Cruz.  At  Perote  he 
learned  that  General  Canalize  had  fallen  back  from  the 
national  bridge,  leaving  there  four  cannon  of  large  caliber, 
and,  annoyed  at  this,  he  ordered  him  to  return  and  save 
the  artillery,  which,  having  been  dismounted,  had  to  be 
drawn  off  by  oxen.  Mexican  history  relates  that  "many 
of  the  dispersed  soldiers  who  had  taken  the  oath  at  Vera 
Cruz  (paroled  at  the  surrender)  were  compelled  by  Santa 
Anna  to  re-enter  the  service,  and  were  assigned  to  different 
corps,  the  officers  being  sent  to  San  Andres  Chalchi- 
comula." 

Lieutenant-Colonel  Robles,  a  paroled  prisoner,  being 
ordered  by  Canalize  to  make  a  reconnoissance  of  Cerro 
Gordo  and  report  upon  its  fitness  for  defense,  found  it, 
in  his  opinion,  advantageous  for  harassing  an  invading 
army  on  its  march  to  Jalapa,  but  not  the  best  point  to 
dispute  its  passage  or  to  attempt  a  decisive  battle.  His 
opinion  was  based  upon  the  fact  that  the  road  could  be 
reached  in  rear  of  the  position — in  other  words,  the  posi 
tion  could  be  turned,  and  the  best  that  could  be  expected,  if 
the  enemy  should  attack  in  front,  was  to  repulse  him,  with 
out  being  able  to  prevent  him  re-forming  his  forces  on  the 
heights  of  Pala  Gacho.  The  want  of  water  was  another 
objection  to  its  selection,  but,  notwithstanding  this  unfav 
orable  report,  Canalize,  by  Santa  Anna's  express  order, 
directed  Robles  to  commence  fortifying  Cerro  Gordo. 

April  9th  Santa  Anna  arrived  at  Cerro<  Gordo,  made  a 
reconnoissance  of  the  Plan-del-Rio,  found  Colonel  Robles 
engaged  with  working  parties  at  the  foot  of  the  Cerro 
Telegrafo,  and  ordered  him  to  fortify,  in  addition,  certain 
hills  on  the  right  of  the  road,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Cano  to 
have  charge  of  the  works  on  its  left.  He  passed  the  night 
of  the  Qth  at  Plan-del-Rio,  and  Twigg's  division,  on  the 
march  from  Vera  Cruz,  bivouacked  some  twenty-five  or 
thirty  miles  from  that  place. 


62  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

Santa  Anna  returned  to  Encero,  but  came  back  to 
Cerro  Gordo  on  the  nth,  and  established  his  headquarters 
there.  Twigg's  division  reached  Pian-del-Rio  on  the  same 
day.  By  the  I2th  the  brigades  of  Generals  Rangel  and 
Pinzon,  the  Nationals  of  Jalapa  and  Coatepec,  and  the 
Angostura  troops  had  all  arrived  at  Cerro  Gordo,  and  field 
works  were  being  hurried  forward  with  the  greatest  ac 
tivity  by  the  engineers.  Patterson's  division  joined 
Twiggs'  at  Plan-del-Rio,  and  the  latter,  aware  of  the  pres 
ence  of  the  enemy  in  his  immediate  front,  sent  out,  early 
on  the  1 2th,  reconnoitering  parties,  who  ascertained  that 
the  main  Mexican  army  was  in  position  about  three  miles 
from  the  Plan-del-Rio,  that  there  was  a  battery  intrenched 
in  the  road,  commanding  with  its  fire  a  distance  of  six  or 
seven  hundred  yards,  and  that  the  hostile  line  at  this  bat 
tery  crossed  the  road.  Captain  Joseph  A.  Johnston,  topo 
graphical  engineer,  leaving  the  National  road  and  follow 
ing  a  blind  footpath  to  the  left,  discovered  the  position 
and  direction  of  the  line,  also  batteries  in  position  along 
it,  and  while  engaged  in  a  close  reconnoissance  received 
two  severe  wounds  from  musket  balls. 

Lieutenant  S.  H.  Brooks,  aide  to  General  Twiggs,  fol 
lowed  a  path  to  the  right  of  the  road,  about  one  thousand 
yards  in  front  of  the  Mexican  battery,  and  which,  owing 
to  a  dense  tropical  undergrowth,  was  indistinct  and  diffi 
cult  to  trace,  yet  he  made  his  way  over  it  for  nearly  a 
mile.  It  was  thought  that  the  enemy's  position,  if  found 
too  strong  to  be  attacked  in  front,  might  be  turned  by  this 
route. 

General  Scott,  as  anticipated,  arrived  at  the  head  of 
his  columns  and  was  informed  of  the  enemy's  position, 
supposed  strength  and  the  developments  up  to  date.  He 
directed  reconnoissances  to  be  resumed  early  in  the  morn 
ing  (i5th)  toward  the  Mexican  left,  Captain  Lee,  who  had 
acompanied  him  from  Vera  Cruz,  being  in  charge.  Upon 
arrival  at  Atalaya,  Lee  and  the  other  engineers  ascended 
it,  and  from  its  crest  had  an  extended  field  of  view,  em 
bracing  the  deep  ravine  separating  it  from  the  Telegrafo, 
and  also  one  still  deeper  to  the  right,  apparently  encircling 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  03 

the  Telegrafo,  and  whilst  so  engaged  Beauregard  passed 
around  the  right  of  Atalaya  and  advanced  more  than  half 
way  to  the  Telegrafo. 

The  position  selected  by  Santa  Anna  in  which  to  resist 
Scott's  further  advance  was  a  very  strong  one.  His  line 
crossed  the  National  road,  over  which  the  latter  must 
march,  some  three  or  four  miles  from  the  Plan-del-Rio. 
Its  right  rested  on  an  almost  precipitous  rocky  bank  over 
one  thousand  feet  high,  rendering  it  secure  from  a  flank 
attack  by  infantry.  To  the  left,  and  between  his  right  and 
the  National  road,  were  three  ridges,  with  intervening  de 
pressions,  the  former  terminating  in  rather  elevated  knobs, 
from  which  the  surface  declined  to  the  front.  On  these 
several  elevations  were  batteries,  with  infantry  supports, 
each  covered  by  defensive  works.  A  dense  chapparal  in 
front  of  the  batteries  and  infantry  had  been  cut  down  for 
the  space  of  two  or  three  hundred  yards  and  formed  an 
excellent  abatis.  In  the  road  was  a  battery  of  six  heavy 
guns,  with  epaulement,  having  a  raking  fire  of  six  or  seven 
hundred  yards.  On  either  side  was  a  rocky  bank,  nearly 
perpendicular,  twenty  feet  or  more  in  height,  and  on  the 
north  side  it  rose  up  into  a  high,  rocky  ridge  (Atalaya), 
covered  with  timber.  In  rear  of  the  road  battery  some 
three  hundred  yards  was  a  conical  hill  over  two  hundred 
feet  high,  along  the  base  of  which  ran  the  Jalapa  road. 
This  height,  known  as  Cerro  Telegrafo,  was  crowned  with 
artillery  and  strengthened  with  palisading  and  breastworks 
on  the  north  and  east  sides,  less  than  a  hundred  yards 
from  its  summit.  Three  hundred  yards  beyond  the  Tele 
grafo  were  several  huts,  known  by  the  Mexicans  as  the 
Rancheria  de  Cerro  Gordo.  Near  these  huts,  and  between 
them  and  the  Telegrafo,  a  depression  ran  up  to  the  road 
from  the  north,  and  was  regarded  (so  reported)  by  Santa 
Anna  as  impracticable  for  infantry.  Northeast  of  the 
Telegrafo,  separated  from  it  by  a  valley,  was  the  Atalaya, 
and  to  the  north  of  these  two  high  elevations  was  a  deep 
and  rugged  ravine,  sweeping  around  the  Telegrafo,  and.  as 
stated,  reaching  the  road  west  of  it. 

The  Mexican  commander,  still  believing  that  his  right 


(54  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

would  be  attacked,  ordered  two  twelve  and  one  sixteen 
pounders  to  be  placed  during  the  night  in  position  on  the 
Telegrafo,  but  the  sixteen-pounder  was  left  on  the  roadside 
about  midway  to  the  top.  The  cavalry  was  ordered  for 
ward  from  Corral  Falso,  and  the  engineers,  Robles  and 
Cano,  to  strengthen  the  defensive  works  on  and  about  the 
hill.  In  the  morning,  before  dawn,  Santa  Anna  himself 
placed  a  battery  (F)  in  position  near  his  headquarters,  to 
command  the  ravine  on  the  west  side  of  the  Telegrafo.  Gen 
eral  Vasquez,  commanding  on  the  Telegrafo,  ordered  an 
occasional  shot  to  be  fired  at  Atalaya  during  the  night,  be 
lieving  it  to  be  occupied  by  the  Americans.  The  Fourth  of 
the  Line  remained  on  the  hillside  during  the  night.  A  por 
tion  of  the  Third  of  the  Line  and  the  Eleventh  held  the 
summit,  and  before  daylight  was  reinforced  by  the  Fourth 
Infantry,  the  Third  and  Second  Light.  With  this  force 
Santa  Anna  was  sanguine  of  success  should  the  Telegrafo 
be  attacked,  and  much  enthusiasm  prevailed  among  the 
troops,  the  fact  being  recalled  that  during  the  War  of  In 
dependence  the  brave  and  patriotic  insurgents  had  fought 
and  poured  out  their  blood  freely  upon  this  very  hill, 
defeating  the  Spaniards.  Now  among  the  rank  and  file, 
including  the  commander,  confidence  reigned  and  success 
was  regarded  as  certain.  Before  sunrise  Santa  Anna  had 
his  engineers  engaged  on  the  works  on  the  declivity  of 
the  hill  confronting  Atalaya,  the  American  artillery  on  that 
elevation  playing  at  the  time  upon  the  Telegrafo,  and, 
leaving  the  road,  he  proceeded  beyond  the  right  center, 
where,  hearing  artillery  and  observing  the  activity  of  the 
fire,  he  sent  orders  to  General  Vasquez,  on  the  Telegrafo, 
to  economize  ammunition  and  shelter  his  men  from  the 
enemy's  projectiles. 

The  American  artillery,  eighteen-pounders,  twenty- 
four-pound  howitzer,  mountain  howitzer  and  Racket  bat 
tery,  fired  with  the  greatest  activity ;  the  latter,  with  rock 
ets,  directed  upon  the  enemy's  left  at  and  near  the  base  ot 
Telegrafo,  and  next  with  shells  among  his  infantry  near 
the  heavy  battery  in  the  road.  The  United  States  forces 
on  the  Atalaya  were  commanded  by  Colonel  Harney,  Sec 
ond  Dragoons. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  65 

The  artillery  on  Atalaya  proved  very  effective,  solid 
shot,  shells  and  rockets  falling  among  the  enemy  on  the 
top  and  along  the  slopes  of  the  Telegrafo,  down  into  the 
valleys  and  deep  ravines  adjacent,  in  the  camp,  about 
Santa  Anna's  headquarters  and  often  far  out  among  his 
reserves.  General  Twiggs  had  been  ordered  "to  move 
forward  before  daylight  (to-morrow)  and  to  take  up  posi 
tion  across  the  National  road  in  the  enemy's  rear,  so  as 
to  cut  off  a  retreat  toward  Jalapa."  After  the  artillery 
had  been  engaged  some  time  he  (Twiggs)  ordered  Riley's 
brigade  "to  move  forward  through  the  valley,  passing  to 
the  right  of  Telegrafo,  turn  the  left  of  the  Mexican  line 
and  seize  the  Jalapa  road  in  the  rear."  Riley's  brigade 
was  guided  by  Captain  Lee,  assisted  by  Lieut.  John  G. 
Foster,  with  ten  men  of  the  engineer  company,  and  Lieu 
tenant  Calvin  Benjamin,  Fourth  Artillery,  in  command  of 
a  company,  was  escort  to  Lee  and  party. 

Brigadier-General  James  Shields,  with  three  regi 
ments  of  his  brigade,  the  Third  and  Fourth  Illinois, 
Colonels  Ferris  Foreman  and  E.  D.  Baker,  and  the  Second 
New  York,  Colonel  Ward  H.  Burnett,  was  ordered  by 
General  Twiggs  to  support  Riley's  brigade,  and  the  Mex 
icans  being  seen  extending  to  their  left,  Shields  was  or 
dered  to  cross  the  ravine  on  the  right  and  keep  up  the 
left  bank,  previously  reconnoitered  by  Captain  Lee.  Riley, 
to  reach  the  Jalapa  road,  advanced  under  a  heavy  fire  of 
artillery  from  the  Telegrafo,  during  which.  Captain  George 
W.  Patten,  Second  Infantry,  was  shot  through  the  hand 
by  a  grapeshot.  The  enemy  appeared  in  force  on  the  sides 
of  the  mountain,  along  the  base  of  which  the  brigade 
must  pass,  and  opened  with  an  annoying  fire  upon  its  left 
flank.  Riley  detached  two  companies  of  the  Second  In 
fantry,  one  under  Captain  James  W.  Penrose,  and  one 
under -Second  Lieutenant  N.  H.  Davis,  who,  engaging  the 
enemy  in  greatly  superior  numbers,  were  joined  by  two 
companies  of  the  Fourth  Artillery,  and  Riley  was  com 
pelled  to  turn  his  entire  brigade  to  the  left  to  oppose 
the  enemy  under  General  Urago,  moving  dowrn  the  side 
of  the  mountain  opposite  Atalaya. 

5 


66  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

The  artillery  duel  between  the  American  battery  on 
Atalaya  and  that  of  the  Mexicans  on  Telegrafo  continued 
without  intermission.  Riley  actively  engaged  and  Shields 
w^ell  advanced,  now  led  by  Lee  toward  the  Jalapa  road. 
General  Twiggs  ordered  Colonel  Harney  to  assault  the 
Telegrafo  vigorously  and  carry  it  at  all  hazard.  Harney, 
knowing  there  was  an  infantry  force  on  his  left,  near  the 
batten;  on  the  road,  ordered  one  company  of  the  rifle 
regiment,  under  Lieutenant  D.  M.  Frost,  to  move  in  that 
direction,  engage  it  and  hold  it  in  check,  "and  when  the 
rifles  w^ere  heard  the  advance  would  be  sounded."  Loring 
and  his  lieutenants  rose  above  the  crest  of  Atalaya,  and  as 
they  descended  to  the  left  were  exposed  to  a  severe  artil 
lery  fire,  inflicting  losses,  and  an  infantry  force  being  seen 
moving  along  the  road  up  toward  Telegrafo,  Harney,  with 
out  waiting  to  hear  the  fire  of  the  rifles,  gave  the  order 
to  advance. 

It  was  obeyed  promptly.  The  stormers  rose,  passed 
over  to  the  crest  of  Atalaya,  the  Seventh  Infantry  on  the 
right,  the  Third  on  the  left,  with  the  First  Artillery  in 
rear  to  support,  and  under  a  heavy  artillery  fire  dashed 
down  the  slope  of  Atalaya  and  up  the  steep,  rocky  sides 
of  Telegrafo,  not  halting  until  within  sixty  or  seventy 
yards  of  the  summit.  Here,  being  below  the  plane  of  the 
enemy's  fire,  they  re-formed,  and  the  men,  being  much 
blown,  remained  a  few  minutes  lying  clown,  when  Lieuten 
ant  G.  W.  Smith,  of  the  engineers,  approached  the  hill  top, 
reconnoitered  the  hostile  line  within  pistol  shot,  and  re 
ported  to  Colonel  Harney  that  there  was  no  obstacle  that 
could  not  be  overcome  without  a  halt. 

Harney,  in  clarion  tones  and  with  a  rough  energy  of 
expression  that  proved  as  effective  as  "Up,  guards,  and 
at  them/'  gave  the  order  for  assault.  His  men  rose, 
dashed  forward  over  the  short  intervening  space,  were  at 
the  palisading  and  breastworks  in  an  instant;  a  sharp, 
bloody  struggle  with  swords,  bayonets  and  butts  of  mus 
kets  for  a  few  minutes,  and  Harney  and  his  soldiers  were 
in  possession  of  the  wrorks  crowning  Telegrafo,  the  key- 
point  of  the  Mexican  position. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  07 

General  Twiggs'  order  to  Harney  to  charge  was  well 
timed.     Santa  Anna  had  directed  a  part  of  his  forces  on 
the  Telegrafo  to  oppose  Riley,  who  (hard  fighter  that  he 
was)  met  and  drove  them  back  just  as  Harney's  men  car 
ried  the  works  on  the  crest.     Harney's  left  had  been  made 
secure  by  Loring,  and  Riley  now  freed  his  right  of  danger. 
The  Mexican  guns  captured  on  the  Telegrafo  were 
turned  upon  their  camp  and  battery  on  the  road,  also  on  the 
main  line  beyond,  upon  which  there  was  both  a  plunging 
and  reverse  fire.     General  Shields  in  the  meantime  reached 
the  Jalapa  road,  and  halted  to  reform  his  lines  preparatory 
to  charging  the  battery  in  his  front.     A  discharge  of  grape 
while  advancing  disabled  many  of  his  men  and  gave  him 
a  grievous   wound,   supposed  at  the   time   to   be   mortal. 
The   brigade,  under  Colonel   Baker,  moved  forward  and 
captured  a  part  of  the  battery,  and  Riley's  brigade,  under 
Lieutenant   Nathaniel  Lyon,   Second   Infantry,  the  other 
guns  (three). 

The  Telegrafo  being  captured,  there  was  but  a  feeble 
and  brief  resistance  offered  at  other  points. 

General  Pillow  marched  his  brigade  by  a  flank 
through  the  chaparral  toward  the  center  of  the  enemy's 
right.  At  this  point,  which  was  fortified,  were  700  men 
and  eight  guns,  under  Aranjo,  a  naval  captain;  on  his 
right  were  seven  guns  and  an  infantry  force;  on  his  left 
an  infantry  force  and  nine  guns,  and  all  of  these  twenty- 
four  guns  in  position  could  bear  more  or  less  upon  Pil 
low's  men.  It  had  been  predetermined  by  the  Mexicans 
to  allow  the  latter  to  approach  to  a  certain  point,  then  to 
open  fire  with  all  the  guns,  loaded  mostly  with  grape, 
followed  by  the  infantry  with  volleys.  The  brigade  had 
marched  by  the  right  flank,  and  was  in  that  order  at  a 
halt  when  it  received  the  Mexican  fire.  A  Kentucy  com 
pany  at  the  head  of  the  brigade,  under  Captain  John  S. 
Williams,  came  into  line  and  advanced  toward  the  enemy's 
works.  Colonel  Haskell's  regiment,  the  Second  Tennes 
see,  endeavored  to  charge,  but  the  abatis,  tangled  under 
growth,  and  the  heavy  fire  in  front  and  flanks,  forced  him 
back  with  serious  losses.  The  8-inch  howitzer,  on  the 


68  LIFE     OF  .  GEN.    SHIELDS. 

south  side  of  Plan  del  Rio,  had  in  the  meantime  been 
enfilading  the  Mexican  line,  and  with  a  reverse  fire  had 
no  doubt  aided  in  demoralizing  them. 

The  Telegrafo,  which  dominated  the  entire  field,  being 
held  by  the  Americans,  Riley  and  Shields  on  the 
Jalapa  road,  North's  division  at  hand  fresh  and  com 
pact,  and  it  being  impossible  to  escape  surrender 
was  inevitable  to  the  entire  right  of  the  Mexican  army, 
which  they  conceded,  and,  throwing  down  their  arms, 
marched  back  to  the  Plan  del  Rio. 

In  Shields'  brigade  Lieutenant  Cowarden  was  killed, 
Lieutenant  Murphy  mortally  and  Lieutenants  Scott  and 
Johnson,  all  of  the  Fourth  Illinois,  severely  wounded; 
Captain  Pearson,  New  York  Volunteers,  Lieutenants 
Maltby  and  Froman,  of  the  Fourth  Illinois,  and  Lieutenant 
Rose,  Third  Illinois,  slightly  wounded. 

Lieutenant  Semmes  of  the  United  States  Navy,  in 
his  "Campaign  of  General  Scott  in  the  Valley  of  Mexico," 
writes,  that  on  April  i8th,  1847,  at  Cerro  Gordo,  as  Gen 
eral  Shields  was  about  to  debouch  upon  the  main  road,  a 
battery  of  five  guns,  hitherto  undiscovered,  and  supported 
by  a  body  of  lancers,  opened  upon  him  with  grapeshot. 

The  gallant  general  immediately  ordered  a  charge, 
and,  pushing  forward  briskly  at  the  head  of  his  men,  drove 
the  enemy  from  his  guns  and  effected  a  lodgment  in  the 
road — not,  however,  until  he  had  been,  as  it  was  thought 
at  the  time,  mortally  wounded. 

CERRO  GORDO— GENERAL  SCOTT'S  OFFICIAL  DISPATCH. 

Headquarters  of  the  Army,  Plan  del  Rio,  fifty  miles 
from  Vera  Cruz,  April  119,  1847. 

We  are  quite  embarrassed  with  the  results  of  victory- 
prisoners  of  war,  heavy  ordnance,  field  batteries,  small  arms 
and  accouterments.  About  3,000  men  laid  down  their 
arms,  with  the  usual  proportion  of  field  and  company  offi 
cers,  besides  five  generals.  Our  loss,  though  compara 
tively  small  in  numbers,  has  been  serious. 

Brigadier-General  Shields,  a  commander  of  activity, 
zeal  and  talent,  is,  I  fear,  if  not  dead,  mortally  wounded.— 
Winfield  Scott. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  69 

Scott  was  greatly  rejoiced  to  hear  shortly  after  the 
battle  that  Shields  was  not  only  still  alive,  but  had  a  very 
favorable  prospect  of  recovering.  Mounting  his  horse, 
he  galloped  to  where  his  gallant  but  prostrate  lieutenant 
lay,  which  was  five  miles  distant  from  headquarters,  and 
most  tenderly  embraced  him.  The  meeting,  which  was 
an  affecting  one,  is  illustrated  in  Mansfield's  History  of 
the  Mexican  War. 

Mansfield,  in  his  history  of  the 
war  in   Mexico,  says :        "'At   Cerro 
Gordo  a  cannon  grapeshot  an  inch 
and  a  third  in  diameter  entered  Gen 
eral  Shields'  right  lung  and  passed 
out  near  the  spine.     He  was  carried 
to  the  rear.     Turning  to  Richard  J. 
^  Oglesby,  an  officer  in  one  of  the  Illi- 
is  is  the  size  of  the  bail  iiois  regiments,  Shields  said  :     'I  am 

that    pierced     Gen.     Shields'  ,,. 

body  at  Cerro  Gordo.  no  further  use  to  my  country.     \  ou 

are.  Lay  me  down  and  let  me  die.  I  may  as  well  die  here 
as  to  be  taken  off  the  field  to  die.  You  are  all  strong, 
able-bodied  men,  able  to  do  your  country  some  service. 
For  God's  sake  lay  me  down  and  go  to  your  duty.'  ' 

The  American  surgeons  decided  that  he  could  not 
survive,  when  a  Mexican  surgeon  or  a  French  doctor, 
who  was  serving  in  their  army,  expressed  the  opinion 
that  he  could  save  the  General's  life  if  permitted  to  treat 
him  in  his  own  way.  Consent  was  given  and  in  about 
five  minutes  after  the  injury  was  received,  with  the  aid 
of  a  ramrod,  he  drew  a  silk  handkerchief  through  the 
wound,  thus  removing  the  extravasated  blood  and  thereby 
saving  the  patient's  life.  At  a  lecture  at  the  Tabernacle 
in  Chicago  I  heard  the  General  state  that  he  was  pre 
sumed  to  be  a  dead  man  according  to  military  records, 
since  General  Scott,  after  the  battle  of  Cerro  Gordo,  had 
reported  Shields  as  mortally  wounded.  The  General 
added  that  his  wound  and  method  of  treatment  had  been 
written  up  in  medical  journals,  and  the  conclusion  ar 
rived  at  was  that  it  was  well  that  several  minutes  had 


70  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

elapsed  after  his  injuries  for  the  parts  affected  to  purge 
themselves  of  the  blood  caused  by  the  ball,  and  that  when 
that  had  been  done  it  was'  necessary  to  have  that  blood 
removed  in  some  such  manner  and  the  wound  dressed 
and  cared  for,  otherwise  he  would  have  soon  bled  to  death. 

THE    GENERAL'S    WOUND. 

The  General  claimed  that  he  owed  his  life,  after  hav 
ing  been  shot  at  Cerro  Gordo,  to  Dr.  McMillan,  an  Irish 
man,  wyho  alone  among  all  the  army  surgeons  expressed 
the  belief  that  there  was  some  hope  to  save  the  General's 
life.  He  was  a  French  doctor  in  the  Mexican  service 
who  had  been  taken  prisoner.  He  drew  a  silk  handker 
chief  wound  around  a  ramrod  through  the  General's  body, 
thereby  removing  the  coagulated  blood  and  saving  his 
life.  All  through  life  the  wound  became  affected  when 
ever  the  General  caught  cold,  and  he  often  predicted  that  it 
would  be  the  cause  of  his  death,  which  proved  true.  Dr. 
McMillan  had  been  in  the  French  army  and  there  had 
seen  the  operation  successfully  performed. 

On  December  6,  1893,  at  the  unveiling  of  the  Shields 
statue  in  the  Capitol,  while  Miss  Shields  was  on  the  plat 
form,  a  gentleman  introduced  himself  and  said  that  he 
was  a  descendant  of  Dr.  McMillan  and  had  at  his  home 
in  Virginia  in  a  silver  case  the  handkerchief  that  had 
been  passed  through  her  father's  body  at  Cerro  Gordo. 

I  find  in  Jenkins'  History  in  the  War  with  Mexico 
the  following  account  of  the  battle  of  Cerro  Gordo : 

Fires  were  built  underneath  the  cliffs  upon  a  line 
occupied  by  General  Twiggs'  division,  and  the  work  of 
transporting  the  heavy  artillery  to  the  captured  hill  was 
soon  after  commenced.  This  duty  was  performed  by  the 
4th  Artillery  and  the  volunteer  brigade  of  General  Shields, 
and  occupied  nearly  the  entire  night.  With  the  aid  of 
picket  ropes  one  twenty-fonr-pounder  gun  and  two  twen 
ty-four-pounder  howitzers  were  drawn  up  to  the  crest 
of  the  height  and  placed  in  battery  under  the  superin 
tendence  of  Captain  Lee.  On  the  same  night,  under  the 
direction  of  Lieutenant  Tower,  of  the  engineers,  and  Lieu- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  71 

tenant  Laiclley,  of  the  ordance,  an  eight-inch  howitzer 
was  put  in  position  across  the  ravine,  and  opposite  to 
the  enemy's  right  battery,  by  a  detachment  of  the  New 
York  Volunteers,  commanded  by  Major  Burnham. 

Lighted  only  by  the  flickering  rays  of  their  watch 
fires,  save  when  the  rising  moon  appeared  above  the 
horizon,  the  soldiers  detailed  to  perform  this  arduous  task 
toiled  on  without  cessation  until  the  work  was  completed. 
They  complained  not  of  fatigue  or  exhaustion.  No  dan 
ger  appalled,  no  labor  wearied  them.  Zealous  and  enthu 
siastic,  they  panted  for  the  coming  struggle;  and  they 
were  strengthened,  too,  by  the  confidence  of  anticipated 
success,  the  feeling  of  assurance  that  their  efforts  would 
not  be  in  vain. 

When  the  first  waves  of  the  morning  light  surged  up 
over  the  mountain  tops  from  the  distant  gulf  the  whole 
American  army,  from  the  right  to  the  extreme  left,  were 
in  motion.  The  storming  of  Cerro  Gordo  was  the  first 
object  to  be  achieved.  At  seven  o'clock  on  the  i8th 
the  heavy  guns  planted  on  the  hill  opened  their  fire  upon 
the  height  above  it,  and  were  served  with  effect  by  Cap 
tain  Steptoe  and  Lieutenant  Brown  of  the  3d  Artillery, 
Lieutenant  Hagner  of  the  ordnance,  and  Lieutenant  Sey 
mour  of  the  ist  Artillery.  The  assaulting  party  consisted 
of  the  first  brigade  of  General  Twiggs'  divison,  com 
manded  by  Colonel  Harney,  to  whom  the  execution  of 
the  enterprise  was  intrusted,  reinforced  by  the  3d  Infantry, 
Captain  Alexander  from  the  second  brigade,  and  a  com 
pany  of  sappers  and  miners  under  Lieutenant  G.  W. 
Smith  of  the  engineers.  Before  the  attack  upon  the  main 
work  of  the  enemy  was  ordered,  a  large  succoring  force 
were  discovered  advancing  on  the  National  road,  in  a  direc 
tion  which  would  have  enabled  them  to  turn  the  assaulting 
column.  The  rifle  regiment,  now  commanded  by  Major 
Loring,  Major  Summer  having  been  wounded  on  the  pre 
vious  day,  were  immediately  ordered  to  the  left  to  hold 
the  approaching  force  in  check  until  the  assault  com 
menced,  when  they  were  directed  to  join  in  it  on  that  flank. 


72  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

The  order  was  faithfully  obeyed  in  the  midst  of  a  with 
ering  fire  upon  the  front  and  flanks  of  the  regiment  from 
the  enemy's  batteries  and  intrenchments.  In  the  mean 
time  Colonel  Harney  formed  the  remainder  of  his  troops 
for  the  attack,  the  7th  Infantry  on  the  right,  the  3d  In 
fantry  on  the  ist  Artillery  in  the  rear,  with  orders  to  sup- 
port  the  infantry.  A  few  moments  passed  in  silence  and 
then  the  charge  was  sounded.  The  welcome  note  was 
echoed  and  repeated  along  the  entire  line.  As  one  man 
they  sprang  over  the  crest  of  the  hill,  dashed  down  the 
declivity  and  ascended  the  opposite  height. 

The  2d  Infantry,  Captain  Morris,  and  4th  Artillery, 
Major  Gardner,  forming  the  remainder  of  the  second 
brigade,  commanded  by  Colonel  Riley,  moved  forward  at 
an  early  hour  in  the  direction  of  the  National  road,  in 
order  to  cut  off  the  retreat  of  the  enemy,  under  the 
guidance  of  Captain  Lee,  who  was  supported  by  a  com 
pany  of  the  4th  Artillery,  in  command  of  Lieutenant 
Benjamin.  Their  course  lay  directly  across  a  ravine  swept 
by  the  Mexican  batteries  and  they  soon  became  also  ex 
posed  to  an  annoying  fire  of  musketry  from  the  hill  of 
Cerro  Gordo  on  their  left,  upon  the  western  slopes  of 
which  the  enemy  appeared  in  force.  A  detachment  con 
sisting  of  two  companies  of  the  2(1  Infantry,  under  Cap 
tain  Penrose,  were  promptly  deployed  as  skirmishers,  with 
directions  to  drive  the  enemy  from  the  hill  at  every  hazard. 

Observing  that  Santa  Anna  was  now  extending  his 
line  to  the  left  to  keep  open  his  communications  with  the 
rear,  General  Twiggs  ordered  General  Shields  to  cross 
a  deep  ravine  on  the  right  and  advance  up  its  left  bank 
with  his  brigade  against  the  Mexicans  in  the  road.  The 
skirmishing  party  sent  up  the  hill  in  the  rear  of  the  main 
work  was  warmly  -engaged  with  the  enemy  in  a  short  time, 
and  two  additional  companies  of  the  same  regiment  were 
detached  in  like  manner.  Captain  Lee  continued  his 
course  toward  the  National  road  with  his  escort,  but  the 
remaining  companies  of  the  4th  Artillery,  accompanied 
by  General  Twiggs,  followed  the  movement  up  the  re- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  73 

verse  of  Cerro  Gorclo,  preceded  by  the  skirmishers,  who 
gallantly  charged  upon  the  enemy  and  drove  them  from 
their  positions.  Colonel  Riley  also  commenced  ascending 
the  hill  with  the  remainder  of  the  2d  Infantry. 

A  plunging  and  destructive  fire  of  round  shot,  grape, 
canister  and  musketry  was  poured  upon  the  party  of  storm- 
ers  moving  to  the  assault  of  Cerro  Gordo  in  front.  The 
section  and  rockets  of  Talcott's  battery,  under  Lieutenant 
Reno,  returned  the  fire  with  spirit  and  effect.  The  hill 
was  steep  and  difficult  to  ascend.  Loose  craggy  rock 
and  tangled  chaparral  impeded  the  progress  of  the  assault 
ing  column.  The  tops  of  the  smaller  trees  had  also  been 
cut  off  by  the  enemy  from  four  to  five  feet  above  the 
ground  and  pointed  down  the  hill,  as  an  obstacle  to  the 
advance  of  an  assailing  force.  A  brief  delay  took  place 
at  the  breastwork  near  the  foot  of  the  height,  but  the 
bayonet  did  its  work  truly  and  well.  The  barrier  was 
surmounted  and  the  stormers  pushed  on  with  redoubled 
zeal.  The  steepness  of  the  acclivity  rendered  the  fire  of 
the  enemy  less  sure  and  certain  than  it  might  otherwise 
have  been ;  but  it  was  sufficiently  severe  to  make  the  stout 
est  hearted  stand  in  awe  had  they  not  been  impelled  and 
sustained  by  a  courage  that  could  not  falter.  Animated 
by  the  words  and  heroic  bearing  of  the  undaunted  Har- 
ney,  whose  tall  and  manly  form  was  conspicuous  to  friend 
and  foe  as  he  cheered  his  men  on  to  the  conflict,  the  Ameri 
cans  pressed  forward  with  accelerated  speed.  The  fate 
of  the  day  never  for  a  moment  remained  in  suspense. 
Within  musket  range  of  the  breastwork  around  the  tower 
they  halted  to  deliver  their  unerring  fire.  Again  the 
charge  was  ordered.  Wreaths  of  mingled  smoke  and 
flame  encircled  the  combatants.  Anxious  eyes  were 
turned  in  that  direction  from  every  quarter.  The  colors 
of  the  ist  Artillery  and  of  the  jd  and  7th  Infantry  were 
planted  upon  the  breastwork,  but  the  Mexican  standard 
was  still  flying.  A  few  rapid  volleys  were  fired,  then 
the  crushing  steel  bore  down  everything  before  it  and 
the  flag  which  had  waved  over  so  many  beating  hearts 
in  the  hour  of  victory. 


74  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

Upon  the  extreme  right  the  brigade  under  General 
Shields,  consisting  of  the  3d  and  4th  Illinois,  Colonels 
Foreman  and  Baker,  and  the  New  York  regiment,  Colonel 
Burnett,  were  more  successful.  Crossing  a  ravine,  which 
the  Mexicans  deemed  impassable,  and  which  up  to  that 
time  had  never  crossed  (as  shown  by  the  Vindication  of 
Santa  Anna,  by  Manuel  Maria  Jimen,  published  in  El  Dia- 
rio  del  Gabierno,  May,  1847),  "under  a  canopy  of  cannon- 
balls,"  they  gained  its  left  bank  and  advanced  against  the 
rear  battery  with  a  celerity  which  filled  the  enemy  with 
astonishment.  Santa  Anna  had  evidently  given  up  the 
contest  in  front  and  was  hurrying  with  the  greater  part 
of  his  forces  to  the  rear.  General  Shields  was  upon  them 
in  a  moment.  While  forming  his  men  for  the  attack, 
under  a  heavy  fire  from  the  enemy's  guns,  a  grapeshot 
passed  through  his  lungs  and  he  fell  to  the  earth  com 
pletely  paralyzed.  Happily  for  the  General  himself  and 
for  the  service,  the  wound  did  not  prove  to  be  mortal. 
Colonel  Baker  assumed  the  command,  Major  Harris  tak 
ing  charge  of  the  4th  Illinois,  and  the  column  was  again 
ordered  to  advance.  General  Shields  at  this  time  was 
supposed  to  have  been  mortally  wounded  and  the  brave 
volunteers  were  determined  to  avenge  his  loss.  They 
charged  upon  the  enemy's  line  with  spirit  and  enthusiasm 
and  drove  them  from  their  loaded  guns.  Captain  Lee, 
with  the  company  commanded  by  Lieutenant  Benjamin, 
followed  by  Colonel  Riley  at  the  head  of  the  Second 
Brigade,  approached  on  the  other  flank  and  completed 
the  capture  of  the  battery.  At  this~  point  the  rout  was 
complete. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  75 


CHAPTER     VIII. 


Contreras — Churubusco  and  Chapultepec — Key  to  Painting  in  Capi 
tol  at  Washington,  D.  C. — Bravery  Shown  in  Each  Battle  and 
Wounds  Received — When  Shields  Was  Nearest  Death. 


Just  before  the  battle  of  Padierna,  known  generally 
as  Contreras,  General  Persifer  F.  Smith  in  command,  had 
arrived  in  the  village  of  Contreras,  when  the  following 
incident  occurred,  which  showed  in  glowing  colors  the 
chivalrous  nature  of  General  Shields.  "Soon  after  Gen 
eral  Smith's  arrival  in  the  village  Colonel  Riley's  brigade, 
which  had  been  skirmishing  with  some  detachments  of 
the  enemy,  came  up  and  reported  to  him.  It  was  now 
after  sunset  and  nothing  more  could  be  accomplished  that 
night.  An  hour  or  two  afterward,  and  when  General 
Smith's  plans  for  an  attack  on  the  enemy's  intrenched 
camp  on  the  following  morning  at  daylight  had  all  been 
arranged,  General  Shields,  in  command  of  the  New  York 
and  South  Carolina  regiments,  arrived  on  the  ground. 
General  Smith,  acting  on  the  belief  that  he  was  the  senior 
of  this  officer — they  were  both  brigadiers — directed  him 
to  hold  the  village  of  Contreras,  for  the  purpose  of  cut 
ting  off  the  retreat  of  the  enemy  after  his  camp  should 
be  carried  in  the  coming  assault,  or  to  operate  on  the 
flank  of  his  reserve,  should  he  change  front  and  attack 
him  (General  Smith)  while  moving  toward  Padierna. 
General  Shields,  perceiving  General  Smith's  mistake  with 
regard  to  his  rank,  and  being  unwilling  to  deprive  this 
officer  of  the  credit  of  carrying  out  the  arrangements  he 
had  already  so  ably  made,  with  great  tact  and  delicacy 
forbore  to  undeceive  him  and  gallantly  executed  the  part 
assigned  him.  A  victory  over  the  egotism  of  our  nature 


76  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

which  his  friends  should  cherish  more  than  a  thousand 
victories  on  the  battlefield." — Semmes'  Campaign  of  Gen 
eral  Scott,  pages  270  and  271. 

This  historian,  in  writing  of  the  battle,  says :  "General 
Shields'  brigade,  under  his  skillful  management,  not  only 
protected  in  a  great  measure  the  movement  of  Smith,  but 
intercepted  great  numbers  of  the  fugitives,  who  were 
either  cut  clown  under  the  sure  fire  of  the  South  Carolina 
rifles  or  were  made  prisoners.  Seven  hundred  of  the 
enemy  were  killed  in  this  battle  and  fifteen  hundred  made 
prisoners  and  the  road  opened  to  the  capital." 
JENKINS'  ACCOUNT  OF  CONTRERAS. 

About  midnight  General  Shields  reached  San  Gero- 
nimo,  and  on  being  informed  of  the  arrangements  for  the 
morning,  though  the  senior  officer  present,  magnani 
mously  declined  interfering  with  the  plans  of  General 
Smith,  but  reserved  to  himself  the  double  task  of  cutting 
off  the  retreat  of  General  Valencia  and  holding  the  other 
force  in  check.  Captain  Lee  was  dispatched  to  General 
Scott  to  request  that  a  division  might  be  made  in  front 
simultaneously  with  the  attack  in  rear.  He  succeeded  in 
crossing  the  pedregal  and  the  necessary  instructions  were 
issued  for  a  compliance  with  the  request. 

The  day  broke  heavily.  Dark  masses  of  clouds  drifted 
across  the  sky  or  rested  gloomily  over  the  distant  moun 
tains.  The  dusky  lines  of  the  force  under  Santa  Anna 
were  soon  discovered  making  preparations  to  beat  off  the 
attack  which  they  had  anticipated.  General  Shields  oc 
cupied  the  hacienda  of  Ensaldo  and  the  hamlet  of  San 
Geronimo  and  directed  his  men  to  build  their  fires  as  if  to 
cook  their  morning  meal.  The  enemy  in  front  was  thus 
kept  in  ignorance  of  the  movement  going  on  in  his  rear 
until  it  was  too  late  to  make  a  successful  diversion. 

Immediately  after  the  works  on  the  hill  of  Contreras 
were  carried,  the  Mexican  reserves,  commanded  by  Santa 
Anna,  began  to  retire  toward  Churubusco. 

After  a  brief  interval  General  Pierce,  though  suffer 
ing  severely  from  the  injury  he  had  received,  but  still 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  77 

able  to  keep  the  saddle,  was  dispatched  by  a  third  road 
further  to  the  left  to  turn  the  right  flank  of  the  enemy 
and  gain  their  rear  with  his  brigade  and  the  howitzer  and 
rocket  battery  now  commanded  by  Lieutenant  Reno ;  and 
immediately  thereafter  General  Shields,  with  the  New 
York  and  South  Carolina  volunteers,  forming  the  brigade 
under  his  command,  was  sent  in  the  same  direction  with 
•orders  to  take  command  of  the  left  wing. 

The  brigade  of  General  Smith,  with  which  General 
Twiggs  moved  upon  the  defenses  of  San  Pablo,  was  soon 
warmly  engaged.  One  of  the  most  terrific  fires  ever  wit 
nessed  was  poured  upon  the  column  from  both  musketry 
and  artillery.  The  leading  companies  of  the  ist  Artillery 
were  almost  swept  away.  Captain  Taylor  brought  his 
battery  up  and  opened  on  the  enemy,  persisting  in  hold 
ing  his  position,  though  fearfully  exposed,  regardless  of 
the  carnage  produced  around  him. 

Having  advanced  far  enough  on  the  road  which  he 
was  directed  to  follow  to  gain  the  Mexican  rear,  General 
Pierce  turned  to  the  right  with  his  brigade.  Making 
their  way  through  the  fields  of  corn  and  floundering 
through  the  difficult  morasses,  his  troops  approached  the 
enemy  at  the  hacienda  of  Portales.  General  Shields  ar 
rived  in  a  short  time  with  his  command  and  moved  fur 
ther  to  the  left.  Sheltered  by  the  stone  buildings  upon 
and  near  the  causeway,  the  Mexicans  delivered  a  most 
effective  fire  upon  the  columns,  and  the  action  now  became 
general  along  the  entire  line..  For  more  than  two  hours  a 
continuous  roar  of  artillery  shook  the  earth.  The  sharp  roll 
of  musketry  was  incessant.  Broad  torrents  of  flame 
rolled  down  from  the  enemy's  fortifications.  Lurid  col 
umns  of  smoke  shot  up  toward  the  sky  and  mingled  in 
a  heavy  canopy  over  the  field  of  combat.  The  air  seemed 
"full  of  daggers." 

The  clangor  of  the  battle  was  wild  and  high  and 
the  voices  of  the  officers  could  no  longer  be  heard  in  the 
din.  Numbers  fell  at  every  discharge,  yet  resistless  and 
impetuous  as  the  waters  of  the  ocean  on  swept  the  Ameri- 


78  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

can  soldiers,  wave  upon  wave,  bearing  everything  before 
them. 

On  the  extreme  left,  the  brigades  of  Generals  Shields 
?.nd  Pierce  had  sustained  themselves  manfully.  Fainting 
from  pain  and  exhaustion,  General  Pierce  was  borne  from 
the  field.  The  9th  Infantry  under  Colonel  Ransom,  the  I2th 
under  Captain  Wood — Lieut. -Col.  Bonham  having  been 
wounded  in  the  morning — and  the  I5th  under  Colonel 
Morgan,  advanced  against  the  enemy  with  the  steadiness 
of  veterans.  Colonel  Morgan  was  severely  wounded  and 
transferred  the  command  of  his  regiment  to  Lieutenat- 
Colonel  Howard.  Colonel  Butler  of  the  South  Carolina 
volunteers  fell  dead  in  the  thickest  of  the  fight,  and  Lieu 
tenant-Colonel  Dickinson  also  receiving  a  mortal  wound, 
Major  Gladden  assumed  the  command.  Colonel  Burnett 
was  likewise  dreadfully  wounded  and  Lieutenant-Colonel 
Baxter  took  charge  of  the  New  York  regiment.  It  was 
a  noble  sight  to  witness  the  strife  between  the  Palmettos 
and  the  Ne\v  Yorkers.  Side  by  side  and  shoulder  by 
shoulder  they  moved  against  the  enemy,  each  striving  to 
be  foremost  in  the  encounter.  Twice  were  the  colors  of 
the  New  York  regiment  shot  down,  but  they  were  snatched 
up  again  by  some  brave  spirit,  ready  to  peril  all  in  their 
defense.  Both  regiments  lost  more  than  one-third  of 
their  number  in  this  fearful  struggle  and  the  clothing  of 
the  survivors  was  literally  riddled  by  the  bullets.  At 
length  the  fire  of  the  American  muskets  and  the  howitzer 
battery  actively  served  by  Lieutenant  Reno,  aided  by 
the  panic  communicated  by  the  troops  giving  way 
in  front,  and  followed  by  a  charge  of  the  bayo 
net,  caused  the  enemy's  infantry  to  falter  and  with 
their  supports  of  cavalry  to  retreat  toward  the  cap 
ital.  General  Shields  instantly  followed  and  succeeded  in 
taking  a  number  of  prisoners.  Major  Summer  had  been 
ordered  to  support  the  left  wing,  understood  to  be  hardly 
pressed,  .with  the  rifles,  previously  held  in  reserve,  and  a 
troop  of  the  2cl  Dragoons  under  Captain  Sibley,  but  he 
did  not  come  up  until  the  contest  was  over. 

The  Mexicans  no    longer    made   serious   resistance. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  79 

The  causeway  was  covered  with  the  masses  of  the  retreat 
ing  troops,  and  General  Shields,  with  his  command,  meet 
ing  the  forces  of  Generals  Worth  and  Pillow  in  the  road, 
joined  them  in  the  pursuit.  At  the  special  request  of 
Colonel  Harney  the  way  was  cleared  and  he  was  permitted 
to  follow  the  enemy  with  part  of  his  brigade  up  to  the 
gate  of  San  Antonio,  interchanging  saber  cuts  with  the 
Mexican  lancers  and  cutting  down  all  who  refused  to 
surrender.  The  recall  was  sounded  when  the  battery  at 
the  Garita  opened  on  the  pursuing  force ;  but  Captain 
Kearney  of  the  ist  Dragoons,  who  headed  the  charge 
with  his  troop  and  that  of  Captain  McReynolds  of  the 
3d,  persisted  in  remaining  until  Major  Mills  of  the  I5th 
Infantry,  who'  accompanied  him,  was  killed,  and  most  of 
the  officers  of  the  squadron,  himself  among  the  number, 
were  badly  wounded.  The  trophies  of  this  memorable 
day,  which  had  witnessed  such  a  series  of  brilliant  triumphs, 
including  the  capture  of  Contreras,  were  thirty-seven 
pieces  of  siege  and  field  ordnance,  large  numbers  of  small 
arms,  standards,  pack  mules  and  horses,  and  vast  quan 
tities  of  shot,  shells  and  ammunition.  The  enemy  lost 
4,000  men  in  killed  and  wounded  and  there  were  205 
officers  and  2,432  rank  and  file  taken  prisoners.  Among 
the  captured  officers  were  Generals  Carey,  Anayda,  Salas, 
Mendoza,  Blanco,  Garcia,  Arellano  and  Rincon.  The  first 
two,  being  members  of  the  Mexican  Congress,  were  un 
conditionally  released  by  order  of  General  Scott.  Gen 
erals  Frontera  and  Mexia  were  killed. 

The  American  loss,  though  much  less  in  proportion, 
was  still  very  severe.  There  were  137  killed,  embracing 
some  of  the  bravest  and  most  estimable  officers,  879 
wounded  and  40  missing. 

In  relating  his  experience  in  one  of  the  battles  in 
Mexico  (Churubusco,  I  believe)  I  heard  him  state  that  Cap 
tain  Robert  E.  Lee  selected  the  battleground  for  him, 
Shields,  and  that  the  Mexicans  outnumbered  the  Americans 
to  such  an  extent  that  it  was  impossible  for  the  latter  to 
hold  their  position.  In  retreating  the  only  place  of  safety 
to  be  found  was  in  a  vallev  which  formed  a  kind  of  a  cave, 


80  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

into  which  Shields  with  two  regiments,  the  New  York 
and  Palmetto,  I  believe,  sought  safety.  Mexican  cavalry 
soon  approached,  followed  by  infantry,  and  were  surround 
ing  the  position,  when  Shields  summoned  his  officers  and 
quickly  decided  that  it  was  certain  death  to  remain  where 
they  were  and  that  they  must  cut  their  way  out  at  any 
cost.  He  dispatched  Lee  on  horseback  to  General  Scott 
to  obtain  reinforcements.  The  General  then  formed  one 
of  the  regiments  with  their  backs  to  the  entrance,  placed 
himself  in  front  on  horseback  and  had  the  color  bearers 
line  the  colors  on  the  General.  While  this  was  being 
done  the  other  regiment  kept  up  a  constant  fire  at  their 
assailants,  and  \vhen  all  was  in  readiness  the  General 
wrheeled  the  regiment  into  line  and,  leading  them,  charged 
up  and  out  of  the  valley  onto  their  foes,  who  disputed 
every  inch  of  ground  and  decimated  the  ranks  of  the 
attacking  column,  which  never  faltered,  and  when  it 
reached  the  open  space,  reinforced  by  the  other  regiment, 
fiercely  attacked  the  Mexicans  and  routed  them  before 
reinforcements  arrived.  In  that  charge  the  colors  were 
carried  away  three  times,  two  of  the  color  bearers  having 
been  killed.  The  flanks  of  the  General's  horse  were  bleed 
ing  from  wounds  and  bullets  had  pierced  his  clothing  at 
the  shoulder  and  one  passed  through  his  hat.  When 
asked  if  it  was  a  general's  duty  to  lead  a  charge  in  that 
manner  and  thus  expose  himself,  he  said:  "No;  he  is  never 
required  to  do  so ;  but  as  necessity  knows  no  law,  exi 
gencies  arise  in  battles  that  demand  any  sacrifice  to  secure 
victory.  In  that  case  the  danger  was  so  great  that  it 
required  the  greatest  bravery  on  the  part  of  the  troops 
to  extricate  themselves  from  the  dilemma  in  which  they 
were,  and  my  act  was  for  the  purpose  of  inspiring  them 
as  well  as  to  show  them  that  I  was  willing  to  share  the 
danger  with  them.  Had  I  acted  otherwise  it  is  doubtful 
whether  we  should  have  won  the  victory." 

A  friend  present  then  asked  the  General :  "When 
during  the  Mexican  and  Civil  wars,  or  during  life,  in  your 
opinion,  were  you  nearest  death?"  He  replied:  "In  a 
bar-room  at  St.  Louis  before  the  war  in  Mexico.  I  was 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  81 

practicing  law  at  Kaskaskia  and  received  a  letter  from 
a  client  requesting  me  to  go  to  a  place  below  St.  Louis 
to  draw  his  will.  I  mounted  my  horse  and  started  for  the 
place,  equipped,  as  lawyers  usually  were  in  those  early  days 
in  Illinois,  with  a  saddlebag  containing  a  book  of  forms 
and  a  brace  of  pistols.  I  reached  my  friend's  house,  trans 
acted  the  business  and  reached  a  tavern  in  St.  Louis  on 
my  homeward  journey.  It  was  a  very  cold,  wintry  day. 
I  was  almost  frozen  and  had  to  be  helped  from  my  horse. 
On  alighting  I  went  to  the  bar-room  and  had  prepared  a 
glass  of  brandy-sling,  which  I  was  sipping  slowly  and  try 
ing  to  warm  myself  by  the  stove,  when  I  overheard  a  con 
versation,  quite  animated,  between  two  strangers,  who 
were  present.  There  were  perhaps  a  dozen  people  in  the 
room,  and  after  the  parties  I  refer  to  had  excitedly  contra 
dicted  each  other  two  or  three  times  in  an  excited  manner, 
one,  a  tall,  swarthy  man,  with  a  slouch  hat,  addressed  me 
and  said :  'Stranger,  you  can  settle  this  dispute  for  us,  I 
believe,  and  I  wish  you  would.'  I  replied  that  I  did  not 
want  to  have  anything  to  do  with  any  dispute  between  him 
and  his  friend,  whereupon  his  friend  spoke  up  and  politely 
requested  me  to  decide  the  question  which  they  wrere  de 
bating,  which  he  said  was  a  simple  one,  and,  being  a  trav 
eler,  and  probably  from  Illinois,  no  doubt  I  could  decide 
it  in  a  minute.  I  again  declined,  but  perhaps  not  as  forc 
ibly  as  at  first,  whereupon  both  begged  me  to  let  them 
state  the  question,  and,  if  not  a  difficult  one,  to  kindly  favor 
them  with  the  information  desired. 

"Unfortunately  I  was  prevailed  upon  to  listen  to 
them,  when  the  first  one  spoke  to  me,  stated  the  question 
correctly,  as  his  friend  conceded.  It  was  as  to  the  quali 
fications  of  a  voter  at  a  federal  election  in  Illinois.  With 
out  a  moment's  hesitation,  as  I  was  familiar  with  the  ques 
tion,  I  answered  it.  Instantly  the  man  who  asked  the 
question  said:  'That's  a  damned  lie.' 

"I  never  could  recall  what  happened  the  next  moment, 
but  I  shall  never  forget  w^hat  immediately  followed,  be 
cause  then  I  saw  the  man  referred  to  with  blood  stream- 


82  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

ing  from  his  forehead,  trickling  over  his  face  and  he  glar 
ing  at  me.  In  less  time  than  it  takes  to  tell  it  he  slowly 
reached  his  right  hand  to  a  pocket  and  drew  therefrom 
a  handkerchief,  never  having  taken  his  eyes  off  of  me,  and 
with  the  handkerchief  he  wiped  the  blood  from  his  face, 
looking  at  it  from  time  to  time,  as  it  stained  his  hand 
kerchief.  Then  slowly  replacing  his  handkerchief  in  his 
pocket,  he  sprang  to  his  feet,  put  his  right  hand  to  his 
belt  and  began  drawing  therefrom  a  long  bowie  knife.  I 
knew  from  the  cool,  deliberate  manner  with  which  he  drew 
his  handkerchief  from  his  pocket,  used  it  and  replaced  it, 
as  well  as  from  the  fiendish  glare  in  his  eyes,  that  my  life 
was  in  peril.  It  then  having  dawned  on  me  that  I  had 
smashed  my  tumbler  or  glass  on  his  forehead.  'Tis  said 
by  bystanders,  and  I  have  no  reason  to  doubt  it,  that  I  was 
on  my  feet  as  soon  as  he  and  had  my  brace  of  pistols  fully 
cocked,  pointed  for  his  heart,  and  as  he  drew  his  bowie 
knife  at  every  inch,  my  pistols  drew  nearer  to  his  body  and 
'tis  said  that  eyes  never  shot  fire  worse  than  mine  and  that 
not  a  word  was  said,  since  none  of  us  hardly  breathed  dur 
ing  the  excitement,  and  that  the  moment  that  my  op 
ponent  ceased  raising  his  knife  I  stamped  the  floor 
with  my  right  foot,  and,  pushing  the  muzzle  of  my  pistols 
forward  till  they  touched  his  breast,  that  I,  in  a  loud  voice, 
yelled :  'Put  up  your  knife,  you  cowardly  rascal,  or  I'll 
make  a  corpse  of  you  in  an  instant.'  Without  a  moment's 
delay  the  nerveless  wretch  obeyed,  when  I  ordered  him  to 
leave  the  room,  and  with  pistols  in  hand,  I  drove  him  from 
it  and  from  the  tavern.  In  a  moment  everyone  was  on  his 
feet,  doors  were  locked  and  shutters  put  up,  and  inquiring 
what  the  reason  was  for  such  precautions,  I  was  informed 
that  my  opponent  wras  the  worst  desperado  in  Missouri; 
that  he  was  a  noted  gambler  and  more  than  once  had  killed 
his  man.  I  was  not  permitted  to  leave  the  house  that 
night,  and  the  next  morning,  after  much  urging,  was  pre 
vailed  upon  not  to  return  by  a  road  through  the  bushes 
that  led  to  the  ferry,  but  to  take  a  longer  route  through 
the  settled  portion  of  the  town,  which  I  did.  While  riding 
to  the  ferry  I  hitched  my  horse  in  front  of  a  watchmaker's 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  83 

to  have  my  watch  regulated,  and  on  entering  the  store 
at  some  distance  from  me  I  saw  the  notorious  gambler  ap 
parently  making  a  purchase  of  the  watchmaker.  I  lost  no 
time  in  cocking  my  revolver  and  the  sound  was  so  familiar 
to  him  that  the  moment  he  heard  it  he  quickly  turned  his 
head,  and,  seeing  me,  said:  'I  guess  I'll  not  make  the 
purchase  to-day/  and  quickly  left  the  store.  I  kept  my 
eye  on  him  while  he  was  in  it  until  he  was  out  of  sight. 
1  transacted  my  business,  mounted  my  horse  and  reached 
my  home  in  safety.  For  killing  a  man  at  a  racecourse 
he  was  hanged  not  long  after.  That  is  when  I  was  nearest 
death." 

SEMMES'    ACCOUNT    OF    CHURUBUSCO. 

When  General  Scott  arrived  at  Coyoacan,  one  mile 
from  Churubusco,  he  halted  a  short  time,  as  General  Worth 
had  done,  to  make  a  hasty  reconnoissance.  This  being  ac 
complished,  he  dispatched  General  Twiggs,  with  one  of  his 
brigades— that  of  General  Smith,  less  the  Rifles— and  Cap 
tain  Taylor's  field  battery,  to  attack  the  fortified  position 
of  San  Pablo,  following  the  movement  soon  afterward. 
He  then  directed  General  Pierce,  with  his  brigade  (Pil 
low's  division)  to  follow  another  road,  to  the  left,  with 
a  view  to  attack  the  enemy's  right  and  rear,  and  at  the 
same  time  favor  Twiggs'  movement.  This  brigade  he 
subsequently  reinforced  by  Shields'  brigade,  composed,  as 
the  reader  knows,  of  the  gallant  South  Carolina,  and  New 
York  regiments.  Shields,  being  Pierce's  senior,  assumed 
command  of  the  whole ;  and  as  he  had  a  bad  habit  of  get 
ting  into  hot  places,  he  was  obliged  to  be  still  further  re 
inforced,  before  the  close  of  the  action,  by  the  Rifles, 
which,  up  to  this  time,  had  formed  General  Twiggs'  re 
serve,  and  by  Captain  Sibley's  company  of  dragoons. 
Twiggs  was  soon  hotly  engaged,  and  Taylor's  battery, 
which  had  imprudently  been  placed  in  an  exposed  position, 
was  disabled  by  the  enemy's  heavier  metal,  and  compelled, 
by  superior  orders,  to  retire.  Shields,  advancing  about  a 
mile  toward  the  right  and  rear  of  the  enemy,  on  the  road 
leading  in  that  direction,  left  the  road,  at  this  point,  and 


84  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

bent  his  course  more  toward  the  causeway,  passing  through 
a  heavy  cornfield  and  reaching  a  position  in  a  swampy 
meadow,  in  which  was  situated  the  Hacienda  de  los  Por- 
tales.  His  object  was  to  penetrate  to  the  causeway,  if  pos 
sible,  and  attack  the  enemy  in  the  rear,  or  intercept  his 
retreat  when  he  should  be  driven  from  his  position  in  front 
by  Worth  and  Twiggs.  There  were  four  thousand  of  the 
enemy's  infantry  drawn  up  on  the  causeway,  covered  by 
some  three  thousand  cavalry,  extending  on  their  right. 
Shiends,  at  first,  endeavored  to  outflank  this  force,  by  a 
movement  to  the  left  (his  left) ;  but  finding  the  enemy  to 
answer  his  movement,  by  extending  himself  to  the  right, 
and  to  do  this  faster,  because  of  the  firm  ground  on  which 
he  maneuvered,  than  he  (Shields)  w^as  able  to  move,  he 
withdrew  his  men  to  the  hacienda,  and  resolved  on  a  front 
attack.  "I  selected,"  says  he,  "the  Palmetto  regiment  as 
the  base  of  my  line,  and  this  gallant  regiment  moved  for 
ward  firmly,  and  rapidly,  under  a  fire  of  musketry  as  ter 
rible,  perhaps,  as  any  which  soldiers  ever  faced."  The  Pal 
metto  thus  forming  the  center  of  the  attack,  the  New 
York,  Twelfth  and  Fifteenth  regiments  were  deployed  in 
support,  on  the  right,  and  the  gallant  Ninth,  under  my 
friend,  Ransom,  was  moved  to  the  left.  The  whole  line 
now  advanced  steadily,  opening  their  fire  as  they  came  up. 
They  were  faced  by  overwhelmingly  superior  numbers, 
however,  and  a  most  deadly  conflict  ensued.  Of  the  two 
hundred  and  seventy-two  men  of  the  gallant  Palmetto  regi 
ment  who  went  into  action  on  this  occasion,  one  hundred 
and  thirty-seven  fell  on  this  bloody  field.  Among  them 
were  the  lamented  Colonel  Butler,  first  wounded,  but  re 
fusing  to  retire,  and  then  shot  dead,  and  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  Dickenson,  mortally  wounded.  In  consequences  of 
the  bad  ground  on  which  the  gallant  brigadier  operated, 
and  the  vastly  superior  forces  of  the  enemy,  he  must  have 
been  cut  to  pieces,  but  for  the  events  which  followed  in 
other  parts  of  the  field.  The  moment  the  enemy  had  be 
gun  to  waver,  and  show  signs  of  confusion,  Shields,  with 
the  remnants  of  his  gallant  regiments,  had  rushed  forward 
and  now  reached  the  causeway,  just  as  the  head  of  Worth's 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  85 

column  came  up.  He  fell  into  our  ranks  and  joined  with 
us  in  the  pursuit. 

Much  of  the  loss,  as  well  as  the  glory  of  this  battle, 
fell  upon  Worth's  division,  although  the  strategic  skill  of 
the  commander  was  put  in  requisition  to  spare  his  men  as 
much  as  possible.  The  relative  numbers  of  the  killed  and 
wounded,  gathered  officially,  after  a  battle,  always  show 
where  the  fighting  was  done.  Worth's  loss  on  this  occa 
sion  was  three  hundred  and  forty-nine;  General  Shields', 
whose  command  was  much  less  numerous  than  Worth's, 
was  two  hundred  and  forty;  General  Twiggs',  whose  divi 
sion  was  about  the  size  of  Worth's,  was  two  hundred,  and 
General  Pillows',  whose  division  was  the  largest  on  the 
ground,  something  short  of  two  hundred. 

Thus  was  fought,  on  the  2Oth  of  August,  1847,  the 
battle  of  Churubusco,  one  of  the  most  brilliant  exploits  of 
our  arms,  and  in  which  larger  numbers  had  been  engaged, 
on  both  sides,  than  in  any  previous  battle  of  the  war. 
General  Worth,  who  had  seen  much  hard  fighting  in  two 
wars,  after  having  described  the  movement  of  his  division, 
expresses  in  the  following  language  his  sense  of  the  tri 
umph  we  had  achieved :  "When  I  recur  to  the  nature  of  the 
ground,  and  the  fact  that  the  division  (2,600  strong  of  all 
arms)  was  engaged  from  two  toi  two  and  a  half  hours  in  a 
hand-to-hand  conflict  with  from  7,000  to  9,000  of  the 
enemy,  having  the  advantage  of  position,  and  occupying 
regular  works,  which,  our  engineers  will  say,  were  most 
skillfully  constructed,  the  mind  is  filled  with  wonder,  and 
the  heart  with  gratitude  to  the  brave  officers  and  soldiers, 
whose  steady  and  indomitable  valor  has,  under  such  cir 
cumstances,  aided  in  achieving  results  so  honorable  to 
our  country;  results  not  accomplished,  however,  without 
the  sacrifice  of  many  valuable  lives."  General  Scott  gen 
erously  and  eloquently  expressed  his  appreciation  of  the 
services  of  his  subordinates,  as  follows :  "So  terminated 
the  series  of  events,  which  I  have  but  feebly  presented. 
My  thanks  were  freely  poured  out  on  the  different  fields, 
to  the  abilities  and  science  of  generals  and  other  officers; 
to  the  gallantry  and  prowess  of  all,  the  rank  and  file  in- 


86  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

eluded;  but  a  reward  infinitely  higher,  the  applause  of  a 
grateful  country  and  government,  will,  I  cannot  doubt, 
be  accorded  in  due  time  to  so  much  merit  of  every  sort, 
displayed  by  this  gallant  army,  which  has  now  overcome 
all  difficulties — distance,  climate,  fortification,  ground  and 
numbers."  General  Shields,  in  his  official  report,  makes 
the  following  honorable  mention  of  my  gallant  friend  and 
co-lieutenant,  Shubrick,  who  joined  the  staff  of  this  officer 
just  before  our  march  from  Puebla :  "Lieutenant  Shu- 
brick  of  the  navy,  who  accompanied  me,  attached  to  the 
Palmetto  regiment  of  his  native  state  and  fought  in  its 
ranks,"  and  is  spoken  of  handsomely  in  the  report  of  its 
commander. 

He  was  one  of  the  hundred  and  thirty-five  who 
escaped  unhurt  out  of  the  two  hundred  and  seventy-two 
of  the  gallant  South  Carolinians  who  had  gone  into  battle. 

"There  is  something  of  pride  in  the   perilous  hour, 
Whate'er  be  the  shape  in  which  death   may  lower, 
For   fame   is   there,    to   say   who   bleeds, 
And  honors  high  on  daring  deeds." 

Wilcox,  in  describing  the  battle  of  Churubusco,  says 
that  General  Scott,  immediately  on  his  arrival  at  Coyoacan, 
dispatched  Captain  Lee,  with  Captain  Phil  Kearney's  com 
pany  of  First  Dragoons,  supported  by  one  company  of 
mounted  rifles  under  Lieutenant  Alfred  Gibbs,  to  recon- 
noiter.  In  speaking  of  the  disposition  of  other  forces 
he  says  Riley's  brigade  had  also  been  ordered  forward,  and 
the  battle  being  now  joined  by  Twiggs,  Worth  and  Pillow, 
General  Scott  ordered  General  Pierce's  brigade,  conducted 
by  Captain  Lee,  to  move  by  the  road  leading  north  from 
Coyoacan,  across  the  Churubusco  River  by  a  bridge  on 
that  road,  then  turn  to  the  right  and  seize  the  causeway  in 
rear  of  the  tete-de-pont.  In  a  few  minutes  General  Shields 
was  ordered  to  the  same  point  with  his  two  regiments,  and 
was  directed  to  take  command  of  all  the  troops  on  that 
part  of  the  field. 

Captain  Lee  returned  to  Coyoacan,  and,  reporting  to 
General  Scott  that  Shields,  engaged  in  rear  of  the  Mexican 
lines,  was  hard  pressed  and  in  danger  of  being  outflanked, 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  87 

if  not  overwhelmed  by  superior  numbers,  Major  Summer 
was  ordered  to  move  with  the  Mounted  Rifles,  under 
Major  Loring,  and  Captain  Sibley's  company,  Second 
Dragoons,  conducted  by  Captain  Lee,  to  support  Shields. 

Brigadier-General  Franklin  Pierce,  with  a  battalion  of 
the  Twelfth  Infantry  under  Captain  Allen  Wood,  and  the 
Fifteenth  Infantry,  led  by  Colonel  Morgan,  ordered  to 
turn  the  Mexican  right  and  cut  their  communications,  was 
followed  by  Brigadier-General  Shields,  Ouitman's  division, 
with  the  New  York  and  South  Carolina  regiments,  Colo 
nels  Ward  B.  Burnett  and  Pearce  M.  Butler.  Shields  was 
directed  to  assume  command  of  the  two  brigades,  with  the 
same  order  as  given  to  Pierce.  The  Ninth  Infantry 
(Colonel  Ransom),  Pierce's  brigade  and  the  mountain 
howitzer  battery,  under  Lieutenant  Reno,  followed  Shields' 
regiment,  which  moved  on  the  road  for  a  mile,  then  crossed 
several  ditches  (the  ground  being  low  and  wet),  next  in 
clined  to  the  right,  passing  over  some  marshy  ground,  and 
through  fields  of  full-grown  corn,  beyond  which  long  lines 
of  the  enemy  were  formed  on  the  turnpike  leading  from 
San  Augustin,  via  Churubusco,  to  the  city. 

General  Shields  attacked  the  Mexicans  by  regiments, 
first  with  the  battalion  of  the  Twelfth  Infantry,  under 
Brevet  Major  Allen  Wood.  As  Shields'  two  regiments 
approached  the  field,  the  line,  owing  to  the  difficulties  of 
the  march,  had  become  much  extended ;  time  was  consumed 
by  the  New  York  regiment  in  forming,  and  when  it  ad 
vanced  the  enemy  was  seen  endeavoring  to  turn  its  flank, 
the  regiment  being  at  the  time  under  a  distant  fire.  Owing 
to  a  number  of  horsemen  and  the  Mountain  Howitzer  Bat 
tery  entering  the  column,  there  was  an  interval  of  300 
yards  between  these  twro  regiments,  and  the  Ninth  Infantry 
of  Pierce's  brigade  was  about  the  same  distance  in  the  rear 
of  the  Palmetto  regiment.  When  the  latter,  ordered  into 
action  on  the  left  of  the  New  York,  moved  forward,  only 
two  of  its  companies  had  formed,  but  as  it  advanced  other 
companies  came  up  into  line.  The  New  York  retiring 
to  cover  of  the  hacienda  on  its  right,  the  South  Carolina 
regiment  became  exposed  to  fire  in  front  and  from  the 


88  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

houses  of  Lavillera  on  its  left.  The  great  eagerness  to 
reach  the  road,  and  thus  cut  off  the  retreat  of  the  main 
Mexican  force  fighting  at  Churubusco,  precipitated  the 
attack  by  regiments,  and  a  new  and  more  united  formation 
being  evidently  indispensable,  the  South  Carolina  moved 
by  the  right  flank  and  rear,  until  it  joined  the  left  of  the 
New 'York  regiment.  General  Shields  and  staff  having 
marked  out  a  line  on  which  the  regiments  were  to  re-form, 
the  companies  of  the  left  wing  of  the  Palmetto  formed 
on  this  line  in  good  order;  those  of  the  right  wing,  becom 
ing  mixed  up  with  men  of  other  regiments,  were  in  some 
confusion,  but  this  was  remedied  when  the  advance  was 
ordered.  A  part  of  the  New  York  regiment  formed  on 
the  right  of  the  Palmettos,  when  the  order  "to  charge" 
was  given,  Major  Gladden  leading  the  latter,  and  not  halt 
ing  until  the  road  was  reached  and  occupied.  The  Ninth 
Infantry  and  Mountain  Howitzer  Battery  joined  in  battle; 
the  latter,  in  position  on  the  right  of  the  hacienda,  threw 
spherical  case  shot  and  canister  into  the  Mexican  ranks 
formed  on  the  road,  the  Ninth  Infantry  on  the  left  and 
the  Twelfth  and  Fifteenth  on  the  right  of  the  volunteers. 

The  above  mentioned  regiments,  the  South  Carolina, 
New  York  Twelfth  and  Fifteenth  Infantry  on  the  right 
and  the  Ninth  Infantry  on  the  left  joined  in  the  pursuit 
on  the  turnpike  toward  the  city,  then  in  full  view,  and 
less  than  three  miles  distant.  The  tete-de-pont  and  con 
vent  had  been  carried,  and  the  enemy  was  in  flight  from 
the  points  along  the  main  highway  before  Shields'  com 
mand  gained  the  road. 

Worth's  division,  Shields'  and  Pierce's  brigades  of 
Quitman's,  Pillow's,  division,  and  the  Eleventh  Infantry, 
Lieutenant-Colonel  Graham  of  Cadwallader's  brigade,  fol 
lowed  the  retreating  enemy,  as  he  fell  back  in  tolerable 
order,  until  Lieutenant  Ayers,  Third  Artillery,  with  one 
gun,  captured  at  the  tete-de-pont,  joined  the  column,  and 
turning  it  upon  the  fleeing  Mexicans,  caused  them  to  rush 
on  in  great  disorder. 

The  loss  in  General  Shields'  command  was  serious 
in  the  higher  grades  of  officers.  Brigadier-General  Pierce 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  89 

when  ordered  to  turn  the  Mexican  right  was  sick.  Gen 
eral  Scott  referred  to  him  in  his  report  as  "just  able  to 
keep  the  saddle."  Colonel  Burnett,  of  the  New  York 
regiment,  fell  painfully  wounded  in  the  battle;  Colonel 
Morgan,  of  the  Fifteenth  Infantry,  was  also  disabled  by 
a  serious  wound  after  being  in  battle  a  short  time ;  Colonel 
Butler,  of  the  South  Carolina  regiment,  had  his  horse 
killed,  then  advanced  on  foot,  a  few  minutes  subsequently 
was  wounded  in  the  leg,  and  turned  over  his  regiment 
to  Lieutenant-Colonel  Dickenson,  but  resumed  command, 
re-formed  his  regiment  under  a  heavy  fire  on  the  line 
indicated  by  the  brigade  commander,  and  was  gallantly 
leading  his  men  in  the  thickest  of  the  fray  when  he  fell 
dead,  shot  through  the  head.  Lieutenant-Colonel  Dick 
enson  was  mortally  wounded  about  the  same  time,  and 
Adjutant  James  Cantey  shot  through  the  jaw.  These 
great  losses,  three  regimental  commanders  being  disabled, 
naturally  had  a  depressing  effect,  but  General  Shields  and 
his  staff  exerted  themselves  to  encourage  the  men,  re-form 
the  ranks  and  lead  them  against  the  enemy;  in  no  part  of 
the  field  and  at  no  time  during  the  memorable  day  was 
more  gallantry  displayed  or  more  dangers  confronted  than 
at  Portales  by  Shields  and  staff.  When  Lieutenant-Col 
onel  Dickenson  fell  he  was  bearing  aloft  the  Palmetto  flag; 
Lieutenants  Abney  and  Sumter  were  wounded  early,  but 
continued  with  their  companies  until  the  last  shots  were 
fired.  Captain  J.  D.  Blanding,  regimental  commissary, 
joined  a  company  and  shared  its  clangers  until  wounded. 
Captain  Hammond,  quartermaster,  aided  the  several  regi 
mental  commanders  by  bearing  orders  to  subordinates. 
Lieutenant  Shubrick,  of  the  United  States  navy,  a  volun 
teer  aide  to  General  Shields,  having  lost  his  horse,  joined 
Company  F  from  his  native  city,  and  fought  as  private 
soldier  with  musket.  Private  Earle,  of  the  quartermaster 
department,  and  not  required  to  be  in  battle,  joined  his 
company  and  fought  throughout  the  battle. 

In  the  New  York  regiment  Lieutenant-Colonel 
Charles  Baxter  displayed  great  coolness  and  courage,  and 
had  two  horses  shot  under  him.  The  sergeant-major,  L. 


I 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  91 

O'Reilly,  fell  in  front  of  the  colors  of  his  regiment,  while 
advancing  upon  the  enemy.  Color-Sergeant  Romaine, 
having  the  national  colors,  after  being  disabled  in  his 
right  arm,  carried  them  with  his  left  hand  until  shot  dead. 
Corporal  Lake,  of  the  color  guard,  then  seized  them,  and, 
falling  immediately,  Orderly-Sergeant  Doremus,  of  Com 
pany  A,  took  charge  of  them  until  the  contest  closed. 

Key  to  Walker's  painting  of  the  Battle  of  Chapultepec. 

This  splendid  work  of  art  is  twenty  feet  long  by  ten  feet 

high  and  cost  $6,500.     It  is  located  near  the  west  staircase 

at  the  Senate  side  of  the  Capitol  in  Washington,  D.   C. 

In  the  Irish  World  of  June  I4th,   1879,  appears  the 

following : 

SHIELDS  AT  CHAPULTEPEC. 

In  reply  to  a  question  asked  him  in  Washington  last 
spring,  whether  the  painting  of  the  battle  of  Chapultepec 
over  the  Senate  staircase,  where  he  is  represented  as  stand 
ing  in  his  shirt-sleeves,  was  a  fancy  sketch,  General  Shields 
said:  "No;  we  were  taken  just  as  we  stood  by  a  photog 
rapher,  who  followed  the  army,  to  take  sketches  whenever 
he  could.  It  was  afterward  transferred  to  canvas.  The 
incident  which  it  commemorates  was  one  of  the  most 
notable  and  curious  in  my  history.  I  had  been  ordered 
by  General  Scott  to  make  a  demonstration  on  the  City 
of  Mexico,  from  the  Chapultepec  side.  I  gathered  up  the 
magnificent  Palmetto  regiment,  Colonel  Butler,  the 
Mounted  Rifles,  the  New  York  Volunteers  and  O'Brien's 
battery,  and  led  a1  sudden  dash  along  the  aqueduct  toward 
the  city.  The  enemy  gave  way,  and,  seeing  that,  we 
pressed  them  all  the  harder  to  prevent  re-forming.  Gen 
eral  Scott,  who  intended  that  General  Worth  should  take 
the  city  by  the  San  Cosme  route,  instead  of  the  Belen 
route,  saw  from  the  heights  that  I  was  making  rather  rapid 
progress,  and  immediately  detached  two  aides-de-camp 
to  stop  me.  I  saw  them  coming,  and  suspected  their 
errand.  (Lord  Nelson,  you  know,  at  Copenhagen,  was 
the  second  in  command.  When  the  signal  was  given 
to  him  not  to  attack,  one  of  his  officers  called  his  attention 
to  it.  He  put  his  glass  to  his  blind  eye  and  said : 


92  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

'Damned  if  I  can  see  any  signal.  Attack !').  I  didn't 
want  any  message  from  General  Scott  at  that  precise 
moment,  and  when  the  aide-de-camp  got  within  speaking- 
range  and  said,  'General  Scott  sends  his  compliments  to 
General  Shields/  I  hollered  out,  'All  right,  but  I  haven't 
time  to  talk  with  you  now;  wait  a  bit.'  ' 

"General  Scott,  seeing  that  wre  were  still  pushing  ahead 
at  a  breakneck  pace  toward  the  city,  sent  General  Quitman 
to  me,  and  my  horse  having  been  shot  under  me,  I  was 
on  foot,  explaining  to  General  Quitman  that  it  would  be 
madness  for  us  to  desist  from  our  advantage,  and  that 
General  Scott  never  would  have  ordered  it  if  he  knew 
how  gloriously  we  were  advancing.  Oh !  But  he  was 
a  gallant  soldier,  that  General  Quitman,  and  a  generous 
one,  and,  instead  of  ordering  me  back,  he  told  me  to  go 
ahead.  So,  on  we  went,  and  in  less  than  twenty  minutes 
we  entered  the  garita.  or  city  gate,  and  unfurled  the  first 
American  flag  in  the  City  of  Mexico — the  flag  that  was 
borne  by  the  gallant  Palmetto  regiment.  The  artist  hap 
pened  to  get  his  camera  in  focus  just  while  I  was  talking 
to  General  Quitman,  and  so  I  apprehend  it  is  a  more  cor 
rect  battlepiece  than  the  most  of  those  that  ornament  our 

public    buildings." 

CHAPULTEPEC. 

Wilcox  says  General  Quitman  was  met  at  the  adobe 
houses,  and  near  him  was  Brigadier-General  Shields, 
bleeding  freely  from  a  wound  in  the  arm;  the  difficulties 
of  the  storming  party  were  explained,  and  the  troops  then 
approaching  were  ordered  to  turn  off  to  the  left  at  right 
angles  to  the  road  and  move  against  the  castle  through 
an  opening  visible  in  the  surrounding  wall. 

The  enemy  was  also  behind  the  aqueduct,  at  ancl 
near  the  gate  leading  into  Chapultepec,  in  houses  and  on 
the  azoteas,  strengthened  with  sand  bags,  but  the  castle 
had  been  taken  before  the  firing  ceased  at  the  foot  of  the 
hill  near  the  gate. 

Of  Quitman's  troops,  the  South  Carolina  regiment 
on  reaching  the  wall  broke  through  it.  The  New  York 
and  Pennsylvania  regiments,  inclining  to  the  left,  passed 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  93 

through  at  the  redan,  where  Johnston  had  crossed.  The 
South  Carolinians,  having  broken  through  the  wall, 
ascended  the  hill  and  joined  the  foremost,  as  did  the  New 
York  regiment,  notably  the  company  commanded  by 
Lieutenant  Mayne  Reid,  who  had  been  guarding  battery 
No.  2.  When  this  battery  ceased  firing,  he  moved  forward 
at  a  run,  joined  the  advanced  troops  in  the  ascent,  and 
fell  wounded  near  the  ditch.  General  Pillow  was  wounded 
at  the  foot  of  the  hill,  and  Colonel  T.  B.  Ransom,  of  the 
Ninth  Infantry,  was  killed,  shot  through  the  head,  while 
leading  his  regiment  near  the  storming  party. 

Lieutenant  Brower,  of  the  New  York  regiment,  is 
credited  with  the  honor  of  receiving  personally  the  sur 
render  of  General  Bravo  and  escorting  his  prisoner  •  to 
General  Cadwallader,  who  states  in  his  report  that  "The 
Mexican  flag  which  floated  over  the  fortress,  and  which 
had  been  three  times  shot  clown  by  our  artillery,  was  low 
ered  and  handed  to  me  by  Major  Thomas  H.  Seymour,  of 
the  Ninth  infantry. 

THE   CITY   OF  MEXICO. 

After  the  capture  of  Chapultepec  General  Quitman 
ordered  his  staff  to  refill  cartridge  boxes,  preparatory  to 
an  advance  along  the  aqueduct  toward  the  Garita-de- 
Belen,  and  rode  up  to  the  castle  to  have  a  more  extended 
view  of  the  valley  and  approaches  of  the  city. 

Napoleon,  when  speaking  of  the  siege  of  Valencia,  in 
Spain,  by  Moncey,  in  which  the  latter  was  beaten  off,  says, 
"A  city  with  eighty  thousand  inhabitants,  barricaded 
streets,  and  artillery  placed  at  the  gates,  cannot  be  taken 
by  the  collar;"  but  this  was  precisely  what  we  had  to  do, 
with  regard  to  Mexico,  with  two  hundred  thousand  inhab 
itants.  There  were  four  principal  garitas,  or  gates  of  the 
city,  on  the  side  on  which  we  were  operating — from  south 
to  west — to  wit,  the  gate  of  San  Antonio,  that  of  the  Nino 
Perdido,  that  of  Belen,  and  that  of  San  Cosme.  The  first 
stood  at  the  entrance  into  the  city  of  the  great  causeway 
of  San  Antonio,  leading  direct  from  San  Augustin,  and 
passing  through  Churubusco ;  the  second  commanded  the 
causeway  leading  into  the  city,  from  a  point  a  short  dis- 


94  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

tance  this  side  of  San  Angel;  the  third  commanded  the 
causeway  leading  from  Chapultepec  into  the  city,  and  the 
fourth,  that  of  San  Cosme,  leading  from  Tacuba,  and  joined 
also  by  another  causeway  from  Chapultepec.  The 
ground  between  these  several  causeways  was  low  and 
marshy,  and  in  the  rainy  season — in  which  we  were 
operating — partially  inundated  by  detached  pools  of  water. 
It  was,  therefore,  impracticable,  Several  cross-roads 
passed  from  one  causeway  to  another;  sometimes  two  or 
more  of  these  entering  the  city,  at  or  near  the  same  gate. 
These  various  approaches  were  cut  out  from  point  to  point, 
and  were  defended  by  breastworks  and  artillery.  In  addi 
tion  to  the  batteries  which  commanded  the  direct  ap 
proaches,  other  batteries  were  placed  on  the  flanks  of 
these,  so  as  to  fire  across  the  road,  and,  at  the  same  time, 
upon  the  flanks  and  the  rear  of  the  first  batteries,  when 
these  should  be  carried.  Each  city  gate  was  a  fortress,  and 
the  walls  of  the  city  were  surrounded  by  wet  ditches  of 
great  width  and  depth,  constructed  for  the  purpose  of 
drainage,  and  now  coming  conveniently  into  play  for 
defense.  Meanwhile,  General  Persifer  Smith  ordered  the 
ditch  across  the  Tacubaya  road  to  be  filled  and  the  parapet 
leveled,  to  permit  the  passage  of  artillery. 

"The  pursuit,  with  a  short  pause  at  Chapultepec,  was 
pressed  vigorously  on  the  two  roads  (map  xiv)  into  the 
city.  The  more  direct  of  these,  the  one  followed  by  Quit- 
man,  led  to  the  Garita-de-Belen,  about  two  miles  distant. 
Worth  advanced  over  the  other  and  longer,  which  entered 
the  city  through  the  San  Cosme  Garita.  These  roads 
were  broad,  level  avenues.  In  the  center  of  each  was 
an  aqueduct,  consisting  of  an  open  stone  trough,  resting 
on  arches  springing  from  stone  piers  and  right  and  left  of 
the  causeway  were  ditches  filled  with  water. 

The  Mounted  Rifles,  under  Major  W.  W.  Loring, 
followed  by  Captain,  Drum's  guns,  the  remainder  of  Quit- 
man's  command,  Smith's  brigade  of  Twigg's  division,  and 
a  portion  of  the  Sixth  Infantry  from  Clarke's  brigade, 
Worth's  division,  under  Major  Bonneville,  led  Quitman's 
advance  along  the  Belen  causeway,  on  which,  a  mile  from 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  V)5 

Chapultepec,  was  a  bridge,  called  the  "Bridge  of  the 
Insurgents,"  near  and  beyond  which  was  a  battery  with 
guns,  and  on  its  right  a  parapet  several  hundred  yards 
long,  for  infantry.  At  this  battery  and  along  the  parapet 
was  posted  the  battalion  of  Morelia.  The  resistance  here 
for  a  short  time  was  spirited,  but  the  fire  of  the  Mounted 
Rifles,  of  Drum's  eight-inch  howitzer,  and  a  fraction  of  the 
infantry,  drove  the  Mexican  from  this  position.  A  sec 
tion  of  Duncan's  battery,  supported  by  Colonel  C.  F. 
Smith's  light  battalion,  advanced  to  the  south  side  of  the 
San  Cosme  aqueduct,  and  fired  upon  it,  and  toward  the 
Paseo.  Lieutenant  Fitzjohn  Porter,  Fourth  Artillery, 
was  temporarily  disabled  near  this  work  by  a  severe  con 
tusion  from  a  spent  ball. 

Passing  this  battery  and  intrenched  position,  Quit- 
man's  command  continued  to  advance  on  the  causeway, 
the  Mounted  Rifles  leading,  followed  by  Drum's  guns, 
moved  by  hand.  The  spaces  between  the  piers,  under 
the  arches  of  the  aqueduct  afforded  good  shelter  for  the 
troops  from  the  fire  of  the  works  at  the  Belen  Gate,  now 
sweeping  the  level  and  straight  causeway,  but  for  the  artil 
lery,  or  for  the  men  by  whom  the  guns  were  moved  for 
ward,  there  was  no  cover,  and  they  had  to  face  the  fire 
from  the  fortified  gate. 

As  the  riflemen  in  front,  intermingled  with  infantry, 
advanced  from  arch  to  arch  and  approached  the  garita 
they  were  exposed  to  a  body  of  Mexican  infantry,  under 
cover  of  houses  on  the  right  of  the  road.  The  advance 
was  checked,  but  Drum's  guns  and  the  rifle  fire  drove  off 
the  Mexican  infantry.  As  the  gate  w^as  approached  still 
nearer,  the  South  Carolina  regiment  wras  placed  in  front 
with  the  rifles;  ''three  rifles  and  three  bayonets  under  each 
arch,"  supported  by  the  residue  of  Smith's  and  Shields' 
brigades,  and  the  Second  Pennsylvania,  with  a  part  of  the 
Sixth  Infantry,  under  Major  Bonneville.  The  advance 
from  arch  to  arch  was  made  under  a  close  artillery  fire  and 
from  numerous  infantry  at  the  garita  batteries,  at  the 
breastwork  on  the  Paseo,  and  on  the  Piedad  road,  extend 
ing  from  the  right  of  the  gate.  One  of  Drum's  guns,  a 


96  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

sixteen-pounder,  under  Lieutenant  Benjamin,  was  di 
rected  upon  the  garita  with  effect,  and  when  the  enfilade 
fire  from  the  Piedad  road  obstructed  the  advance  of  the 
column,  Drum,  with  the  sixteen-pounder  and  an  eight-inch 
howitzer,  threw  rounds  of  grape  and  canister  and  cleared 
the  way  for  the  column.  The  Rifles,  well  sustained  by 
the  South  Carolinians,  rushed  on  in  the  face  of  a  quick  in 
fantry  fire,  from  the  gate  and  roofs  of  houses  near  the 
breastworks  on  the  Paseo,  amid  the  sheeted  fire  and  roar 
of  thundering  guns  and  captured  the  Garita-de-Belen,  at 
which  point  the  Mexican  capital  was  entered  at  I  130  p.  m., 
September  13.  The  division  commander,  General  Quit- 
man,  was  among  the  first  to  mount  and  cross  the  breast 
work  on  the  side  of  the  aqueduct  fronting  the  citadel. 

Near  the  city  gate  I  saw  General  Quitman  standing 
on  the  parapet  at  the  gate,  facing  the  rear  and  waving  his 
handkerchief.  The  General  immediately  directed  that  a 
flag  be  displayed  from  the  aqueduct,  in  order  that  those  of 
his  command,  not  yet  up,  might  see  where  we  were.  Gen 
eral  P.  F.  Smith  arrived  at  this  time,  and  with  watch  in 
hand,  remarked :  "General,  it  is  twenty  minutes  after 
one." 

As  soon  as  ordered  I  ran  back  from  the  gate  thirty 
or  forty  yards  to  the  South  Carolina  regiment  and  re 
quested  Lieutenant  Frederick  W.  Sellock  of  that  regi 
ment  to  bring  his  flag  forward  to  be  waved  as  a  signal  from 
the  aqueduct.  Inside  the  garita,  on  the  south  side,  was 
a  plank  scaffold  resting  against  the  aqueduct;  using  this 
as  a  banquette,  the  Mexicans  could  fire  over  it,  having 
their  bodies  well  protected.  Sellock  soon  appeared  with 
the  Palmetto  flag,  accompanied  by  several  men  of  the 
regiment,  and  mounted  the  scaffold  by  the  aid  of,  the  men  ; 
he  then  gave  me  his  hand,  and  with  his  assistance  I  was 
soon  up  by  his  side.  The  flag  was  handed  to  us,  but  it 
was  inconvenient  for  two  to  hold;  it  was  then  waved  al 
ternately,  first  by  Sellock,  then  by  myself.  This  account 
of  the  raising  of  the  Palmetto  flag  on  the  Garita-de-Belen 
is  verified  by  the  report  of  the  United  States  Senate  com 
mittee  in  December,  1855,  on  an  investigation  as  to  the 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  97 

first  American  flag  hoisted  in  the  City  of  Mexicp  after  the 
entrance  of  the  American  troops. 

Upon  the  display  of  the  flag,  there  was  cheering 
among  the  men  near  the  gate;  the  firing  had  been  lively 
all  the  time,  but  the  waving  of  the  flag  and  the  cheering 
of  the  men  caused  a  concentration  of  both  artillery  and 
musketry  upon  the  garita.  After  the  flag  had  been  thus 
displayed  several  minutes,  General  Quitman  remarked : 
"That  will  do;  get  down." 

Two  hours  after  the  capture  of  the  Belen  Gate  I  was 
directed  by  the  General  to  have  the  men  withdrawn  from 
the  inside  of  the  gate,  and  to  order  them  to  shelter  them 
selves  near  it  as  well  as  they  could.  About  seventy  yards 
within  the  gate  I  found  Major  Gladden,  commanding  the 
South  Carolina  regiment,  standing  with  the  colors  of  his 
regiment  in  his  hand  and  leaning  against  the  aqueduct,  a 
stream  of  blood  over  a  yard  long  running  from  his  feet. 
He  had  been  shot  through  the  leg  near  the  body,  but  did 
not  leave  his  regiment  until  ordered  to  the  rear. 

The  fire  of  two  Mexican  guns,  posted  at  the  college 
of  the  Belen  de  los  Mochas,  was  very  effective,  and,  to 
gether  with  other  pieces  in  the  citadel,  battered  the  gate 
fearfully.  An  effective  infantry  fire  was  also  delivered 
from  the  roof  of  the  college.  Captain  Drum  and  Lieu 
tenant  Benjamin  were  mortally  wounded,  the  first  inside, 
the  latter  outside,  the  gate ;  Lieutenant  Mansfield  Lovell, 
of  Quitman's  staff,  and  Lieutenant  Earl  Van  Dorm,  Sev 
enth  Infantry,  painfully  wounded  by  spent  balls.  The  losses, 
killed  and  wounded,  were  large.  It  is  still  well  remem 
bered  that  the  aqueduct  was  raked  by  artillery  and  that 
shots  came  also  obliquely  from  the  Paseo  on  the  left,  one 
of  which  killed  three  South  Carolinians  under  the  same 
arch  with  Major  Bonneville. 

Quitman's  force,  however,  could  not  be  driven  from 
the  garita  and  remained  there  under  an  annoying  and 
effective  fire  of  artillery  and  musketry,  which  continued 
until  dark.  During  the  night  a  battery  and  other  intrench- 
rnents  were  constructed  inside  the  gate  under  the  super 
vision  of  Lieutenant  Beauregard,  assisted  by  Lieutenant 

7 


98  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

Henry  Coppee,  Third  Artillery ;  the  former  had  accom 
panied  Quitman's  command  in  its  advance  upon  and  cap 
ture  of  the  Belen  Gate,  and  was  struck  several  times  dur 
ing  the  day  by  musket  balls  and  grape,  but  remained  at 
the  front.  The  battery  was  completed  a  little  before  day, 
and  in  it  were  placed  one  twenty-four-pounder,  one  eight 
een-pound  er,  and  one  eight-inch  howitzer,  under  Cap 
tain  Edward  Steptoe,  Second  Artillery. 

At  dawn  of  the  I4th  a  white  flag  was  sent  from  the 
Citadel  on  the  Garita-de-Belen,  the  bearers  of  which  re 
quested  General  Ouitman  to  take  possession,  reporting 
that  the  city  had  been  evacuated  by  Santa  Anna  and  his 
army.  Lieutenants  Beauregard  aand  Lovell  moved  for 
ward  to  ascertain  the  truth  of  this  report,  and  at  a  signal 
given  by  them  from  the  parapet  of  the  citadel,  Quitman, 
leaving  the  South  Carolina  regiment  as  a  guard  to  the 
Belen  Gate,  marched  his  command,  Smith's  brigade  lead 
ing,  and  took  possession  of  the  citadel,  finding  there  fif 
teen  guns  mounted  and  as  many  not  in  position,  with  an 
extensive  variety  of  military  stores.  The  Second  Penn 
sylvania  regiment  was  left  there  as  a  garrison.  General 
Quitman,  learning  that  great  depredations  were  being 
committed  in  the  National  Palace  and  other  public  build 
ings,  marched  his  command,  followed  by  Steptoe's  battery, 
to  the  Grand  Plaza,  and  halted  it  there,  the  troops  being 
on  the  west  and  south  sides  of  the  plaza,  and  having  the 
National  Palace  and  cathedral  in  front. 

Soon  after  the  arrival  in  the  plaza  the  stars  and 
stripes  were  displayed  from  the  flagstaff  of  the  National 
Palace,  and  were  greeted  enthusiastically  by  the  troops, 
although  much  exhausted  by  the  labor  and  excitement 
of  the  preceding  day  and  by  the  fatigue  of  the  cold,  cheer 
less  night,  passed  without  fires  and  within  the  range  of 
the  enemy's  guns.  As  soon  as  the  Grand  Plaza  was  occu 
pied,  General  Quitman  dispatched  Lieutenant  Beauregard 
to  report  the  fact  to  the  generai-in-chief. 

About  eight  a.  m.  General  Scott,  accompanied  by  his 
staff  and  escorted  by  the  cavalry,  all  in  full  dress,  entered 
the  Grand  Plaza  at  the  northwest  angle,  filed  to  the  right 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  99 

along  the  west  side  and  when  on  a  line  with  the  front  of  the 
cathedral  turned  to  the  left;  arms  were  then  presented, 
colors  lowered,  and  drums  beaten.  General  Scott  dis- 
mountd,  uncovered  his  head,  then  passed  through  the 
porte-cochere  of  the  National  Palace,  followed  by  General 
Quitman  and  Smith  and  staff  officers.  In  the  patio  he 
turned  to  them  and  said :  "Gentlemen,  we  must  not  be 
too  elated  at  our  success;"  then,  after  a  slight  pause,  "Let 
me  present  to  you  the  civil  and  military  governor  of  the 
City  of  Mexico,  Major-General  John  A.  Quitman.  I  ap 
point  him  at  this  instant.  He  has  earned  the  distinction 
and  shall  have  it." 

The  operations  of  the  i3th  of  September-  were  suc 
cessful  in  every  detail,  the  assault  upon  Chapultepec  and 
its  surrounding  works  being  well  planned  and  executed 
with  a  skill  that  baffled  and  again  misled  Santa  Anna  as 
to  the  real  point  of  attack.  The  American  commander  did 
not,  on  this  occasion,  permit  his  adversary  to  recover  from 
the  shock  experienced  by  the  loss  of  Chapultepec,  but  by 
a  prompt  pursuit  and  good  fighting  entered  the  capital 
through  two  of  its  gates,  and  held  them  despite  the  deter 
mined  efforts  of  Santn  Anna,  especially  at  the  Garita-de- 
Belen,  to  dislodge  him.  The  fall  of  Chapultepec,  speedily 
followed  by  the  capture  of  the  Belen  and  San  Cosine  gates, 
was  the  finishing  stroke  in  the  campaign  in  tlie  Valley  of 
Mexico,  and  forced  Santa  Anna  with  his  dispirited,  de 
moralized  and  greatly  depleted  army  to  abandon  the  cap 
ital  during  the  night.  Reduced  as  it  was  in  numbers,  it 
was  equal  to  the  American  army  when  it  first  appeared 
in  front  of  the  city,  for  we  learn  from  Mexican  authorities 
that  soon  after  nightfall  of  the  I3th  there  were  about  5,000 
infantry  and  4,000  cavalry  at  the  citadel,  the  troops  hold 
ing  the  Nino  Perdido,  La  Profesa  and  San  Fernando  not 
being  included  in  these  estimates. 

The  loss  in  the  American  army  in  its  various  collisions 
with  the  Mexican,  including  the  street  fighting  of  the  I4th 
and  1 5th,  was  2,703;  of  this  number  383  were  officers. 
Deducting  this  number  front  the  force  (10,300)  that 
marched  from  Puebla,  would  leave  7,697 ;  and  if  from  this 


100  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

we  take  the  garrison  of  the  Mexcoac — the  general  depot — 
that  of  Tacubaya,  and  the  force  left  to  guard  prisoners 
and  captured  property  at  Chapultepec,  there  would  remain 
less  than  6,000  who  took  possession  of  the  City  of  Mex 
ico. 

In  his  official  report  General  Scott  writes:  "On  the 
other  hand,  this  small  force  (his  army)  has  beaten,  in  view 
of  their  capital,  the  whole  Mexican  army  of  (at  the  be 
ginning)  30,000  men,  posted  always  in  chosen  positions, 
behind  intrenchments  or  more  formidable  defenses  of  na 
ture  and  art;  killed  or  wounded  of  that  number  more 
than  7,000  officers  and  men;  taken  3,730  prisoners,  one- 
seventh  officers,  including  thirteen  generals,  of  whom  three 
had  been  president  of  this  republic;  captured  more  than 
twenty  colors  and  standards,  seventy-five  pieces  of  ord 
nance,  besides  fifty-seven  wall  pieces,  20,000  small  arms,  an 
immense  quantity  of  shot,  shell,  powder,  etc." 

Lieutenants  Mansfield  Lovell,  Fourth  Artillery,  and 
C.  M.  Wilcox,  Seventh  Infantry,  were  the  aids  of  General 
Ouitman.  The  former  had  been  acting  assistant  adjutant- 
general  from  the  nth  of  August  until  the  i8th  of  Sep 
tember.  Captain  F.  N.  Page,  acting  adjutant-general, 
and  Lieutenant  R.  P.  Hammond,  Third  Artillery,  the  first 
on  duty  with  General  Shields  as  .adjutant -general,  the  latter 
as  aid,  were  ordered,  September  I5th,  to  report  to  General 
Ouitman,  General  Shields  being  disabled  by  a  painful 
wound,  which  made  it  probable  that  he  would  not  return 
to  duty  for  several  months. 

Six  weeks  after  the  capture  of  the  City  of  Mexico  a 
large  train  with  a  strong  escort  was  sent  to  Vera  Cruz, 
under  Colonel  Harney's  command,  Second  Dragoons,  to 
bring  up  much  needed  supplies  and  aid  in  transporting  the 
reinforcing  detachments  so  long  expected.  Being  the  first 
down  train,  it  carried  with  it  a  number  of  wounded  officers 
and  men  and  many  on  the  ordinary  sick  leave;  among 
the  former  was  Brigadier-General  Shields,  whose  wound, 
received  at  Chapultepec,  had  proved  to  be  very  serious 
and  had  endangered  his  life. 

The  United  States  forces  employed  in  the  invasion  of 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  101 

Mexico  aggregated  about  100,000  armed  men — 26,690 
regulars,  56,926  volunteers  and  the  balance  in  the  navy, 
commissariat  and  transportation  departments.  Of  this 
number  120  officers  and  1,400  men  fell  in  battle  or  died 
from  wounds  received  there;  100  officers  and  10,800  per 
ished  by  disease,  always  more  fatal  than  bullets,  and  many 
were  ruined  in  health  or  disabled  by  wounds — in  all  about 
25,000.  The  cost,  exclusive  of  pensions  granted  in  late 
years,  was  from  130  to  160  millions  of  dollars. 

Turning  from  the  debit  to  the  credit  side,  the  United 
States  gained  in  Texas  and  the  ceded  territory  about 
1,000,000  square  miles  of  land,  increasing  their  area  one- 
third  and  adding  5,000  miles  of  seacoast  and  three  great 
harbors;  but  the  paramount  gain  from  the  Mexican  war 
was  one  not  measurable  by  square  miles  or  to  be  estimated 
by  dollars — a  national  prestige  inspiring  confidence  at 
home  and  respect  abroad.  Its  momentum  generated  a 
force  which,  flashing  forth  in  1861,  removed  the  blot  of 
slavery  from  the  national  escutcheon  and  is  not  yet  spent. 
Three  presidents — Taylor,  Pierce  and  Grant — bore  in  it 
honorable  service ;  the  roll  calls  of  the  Congresses  imme 
diately  succeeding  it  were  almost  echoes  of  the  muster  rolls 
at  Scott's  and  Taylor's  headquarters,  and  in  the  Civil  War 
(thirteen  years  later)  the  great  leaders  on  both  sides  owed 
their  pre-eminence  in  skill  and  strategy  to  preliminary 
training  in  Mexico,  where,  planning  attacks,  masking  bat 
teries,  turning  positions  or  in  the  rhythmic  flow  of  iron  and 
flame  in  siege  and  assault,  they  received  their  baptism  of 

fire. 

THE  BATTLE  OF  CHAPULTEPEC. 

The  fortress  of  Chapultepec  stands  on  a  rocky  and 
picturesque  mound,  at  the  head  of  the  causeway  of  the 
same  name  and  within  close  cannon  range  of  Tacubaya. 
The  waters  of  Lake  Tezcuco  formerly  washed  its  base,  and 
in  the  days  preceding  the  conquest  it  was  a  favorite  resort 
of  the  unfortunate  Montezuma.  He  had  a  palace  here, 
and  the  cypress  grove  on  the  west  of  the  hill,  through 
which  we  fought  our  way  to  the  fortress,  afforded  him 
a  gloomy,  but  picturesque  promenade,  in  the  hours  of 


102  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

recreation  and  retirement.  Many  of  the  venerable  old 
cypresses  in  this  grove,  which  afforded  us  such  friendly 
shelter  from  the  enemy's  balls,  are  three  and  four  feet  in 
diameter,  and  have  probably  stood  from  four  to  five  hun 
dred  years,  like  the  "cedars  of  Lebanon,"  witnessing  the 
coming  and  going  of  many  generations,  and  preaching 
eloquently  to  the  nothingness  of  man.  On  the  north,  the 
hill  is  entirely  inaccessible,  it  being  a  bluff  precipice ; 
and  it  is  surrounded,  in  its  other  parts,  by  two  massive 
stone  walls  with  ditches.  The  inner  of  these  walls  is 
from  twelve  to  fifteen  feet  high.  Within  this  wall,  and 
on  the  apex  of  the  rugged  height,  stands  a  tasteful  and 
rather  elegant  building,  with  dome  and  colonnades, 
commanding  an  extensive  view  of  the  City  of  Mexico  and 
the  magnificent  valley  around.  This  is,  at  the  same  time, 
the  military  college  of  the  republic  and  the  citadel  of  the 
fortress.  Hence  proceeds  all  the  science  which  has 
taught  and  prompted  the  Mexicans,  for  so  many  years 
past,  to  make  a  domestic  battlefield  of  their  unfortunate 
country.  On  the  west,  the  hill  descends,  by  a  gradual 
slope,  to  the  grove  of  cypresses,  before  described,  and  it 
was  seen  at  a  glance  that  this  was  the  side  on  which  to 
assault  it. 

All  necessary  arrangements  being  made,  at  daylight 
on  the  morning  of  the  I3th  of  September,  General  Scott 
ordered  his  batteries  to  open  upon  Chapultepec,  directing 
Pillow  and  Quitman  to  move  forward  to  the  assault  upon 
the  cessation  of  his  fire.  This  occurred  about  eight 
o'clock,  and  both  generals  immediately  put  themselves 
in  motion.  Quitman's  storming  parties  were  composed, 
besides  the  reinforcement  from  Twiggs'  division,  under 
Captain  Casey,  of  a  picked  volunteer  force,  under  Captain 
Reynolds,  of  the  Marines,  and  of  one  hundred  and  twenty 
men,  under  Major  Twiggs,  of  the  same  corps.  The  road 
over  which  he  advanced,  besides  being  cut  so  as  to  render 
it  nearly  impassable,  was  swept  by  a,  battery  in  front,  and 
fired  up  in  flank,  by  other  batteries  on  the  causeway. 
Long  lines  of  infantry  lay  behind  dikes,  and  occupied 
every  other  point  which  afforded  them  the  least  shelter. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  103 

It  seemed  impossible  for  men  to  advance  in  face  of  such 
obstacles,  but  the  gallant  Mississippian,  with  his  storming 
parties  in  front,  moved  forward  boldly  to  the  assault. 
On  his  left,  a  short  distance  from  the  road,  there  were 
some  stone  and  adobe  houses,  which  afforded  him  partial 
shelter,  and  thither  he  moved  by  a  flank.  Before  these 
houses  and  the  outer  wall  of  the  fortress,  there  was  a  low 
,  meadow,  intersected  by  wet  ditches,  partially  covered 
from  view  by  long  grass.  General  Shields  was  directed 
to  move  obliquely  over  this  meadow,  in  the  direction  of 
the  fortress,  preparatory  to  the  assault ;  which  he  did  gal 
lantly  in  the  face  of  an  appalling  fire,  from  which  he  suf 
fered  severely,  being  himself  among  the  wounded. 

After  the  capture  of  the  fortress,  Worth,  without 
waiting  for  instructions,  pushed  forward  on  the  San  Cosme 
road.  Quitman  did  the  same  thing  on  the  Chapultepec 
road.  The  Chapultepec  road  runs  to  the  city  in  a  straight 
line,  whereas  that  of  San  Cosme  makes  an  elbow  or  angle 
to  the  north.  Both  roads  are  broad  avenues,  flanked  by 
deep  ditches  and  marshy  grounds  on  either  side  and  an 
aqueduct,  supported  by  arches  of  heavy  masonry,  runs 
along  the  middle  of  each.  Each  causeway  thus  presents 
two  roads,  one  on  either  side  of  an  aqueduct;  and  the 
reader  perceives  at  a  glance  the  facilities  afforded  by 
such  avenues,  both  for  attack  and  defense.  Quitman  was 
soon  met  and  checked  by  a  breastwork  and  ditch  thrown 
across  the  road,  which  it  was  impossible  to  turn,  and 
which  he  must  have  been  compelled  to  carry,  by  a  front 
attack,  at  great  loss,  had  it  not  been  for  the  friendly  assist 
ance  of  Worth,  who,  delaying  the  march  of  his  own  divi 
sion,  pushed  Duncan  boldly  forward  on  a  cross-road,  with 
a  section  of  his  battery,  covered  by  Smith's  light  battalion, 
to  within  four  hundred  yards  of  the  enemy's  position,  and 
opened  one  of  those  destructive  fires  upon  his  flank  and 
rear  which  nothing  could  withstand.  The  enemy  soon 
gave  way,  and,  while  falling  back,  in  great  confusion, 
Duncan's  grape  told  with  fearful  effect  upon  his  flying 
ranks.  Quitman,  who  had,  at  the  same  time,  been  gal 
lantly  bearding  the  work,  with  a  howitzer,  under  Drum, 


104  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

and  with  Smith's  Rifles,  followed  up  his  advantage  with 
spirit,  and  fought  his  way  bravely  to  the  gate  of  Belen, 
which  he  carried  by  assault  (being  among  the  foremost  in 
the  assault  himself),  some  hours  before  Worth  entered 
that  of  San  Cosme. 

The  gate  of  Belen  is  a  remote  suburb  of  the  City 
of  Mexico,  and  Quitman,  when  he  entered  it,  found  himself 
bearded,  not  only  by  a  formidable  battery  on  the  patio,  but 
by  the  citadel,  a  heavy  armwork  of  large  extent,  which 
was  not  only  sufficient  (taken  in  front)  to  hold  him,  but 
the  whole  army,  in  check.  General  Scott  sent  him  rein 
forcements  and  intrenching  tools,  and  he  employed  him 
self  the  whole  night  endeavoring  to  fortify  himself  in  his 
position,  and  in  constructing  new  batteries,  to  be  opened 
upon  the  enemy  in  the  morning.  But  when  morning 
came  a  white  flag  was  hoisted  on  the  citadel  as  a  token  that 
the  city  had  surrendered. 

Quitman  had  effected  a  lodgment  within  the  gate 
of  Belen,  and  consequently  within  the  City  of  Mexico, 
during  the  afternoon,  and  early  the  next  morning  pro 
ceeded  to  the  Grand  Plaza,  and  hoisted  on  the  capital 
the  proud  emblem  of  our  nation,  the  glorious  stripes  and 
Stars,  which  we  had  borne  in  triumph  from  Vera  Cruz. 

Our  troops,  to  the  number  of  six  thousand,  entered 
the  great  City  of  Mexico,  in  the  undress  uniforms  in 
which  they  had  marched  so  many  weary  miles  and  fought 
so  many  desperate  battles.  To  behold  so  novel  a  spec 
tacle,  the  various  streets  poured  forth  their  thousands  of 
spectators,  and  the  balconies  and  housetops  were  filled 
besides  with  a  gay  and  picturesque  throng.  So  dense 
was  the  crowd  that  it  was  frequently  necessary  to  halt  until 
the  pressure  was  removed.  Almost  every  house  had  pre 
pared  and  hung  out  a  neutral  flag,  as  English,  French, 
Spanish,  etc.,  as  a  means  of  protection,  and  the  fashionably 
dressed  women,  who  showed  themselves  without  the  least 
reserve  at  doorways  and  windows,  gave  one  the  idea 
rather  of  a  grand  national  festival  than  of  the  entry  of  a 
conquering  army  into  an  enemy's  capital.  General  Scott, 
arrayed  in  full  uniform  and  surrounded  by  his  numerous 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  105 

staff,  dressed  in  like  manner,  the  whole  presenting  a  very 
imposing  and  military  looking  cavalcade,  was  escorted  by 
harnessed  dragoons  to  the  National  Palace. 

The  small  scale  on  which  our  war  with  Mexico  was 
conducted  prevents  this  famous  campaign  from  taking 
rank,  in  point  of  numbers,  with  those  gigantic  military 
operations  of  Europe  which  from  time  to  time  have 
absorbed  the  attention  of  nations ;  but  in  this  respect  alone. 
Tested  by  any  other  standard,  it  will  compare  favorably 
with  any  one  of  them.  In  marches,  in  successful  strategy, 
in  hard  fighting  and  in  its  decisive  results,  it  may  be 
placed  side  by  side  with  any  of  Napoleon's  Italian  cam 
paigns,  and  gain  rather  than  lose  by  the  comparison. 
With  a  mean  force  of  ten  thousand  men  we  landed  in  the 
season  of  tempests  on  a  coast  where  pestilence  annually 
sweeps  off  its  thousands,  and  marched  through  a  nation 
of  eight  millions  of  people  triumphantly  to  its  capital,  a 
distance  of  two  hundred  and  fifty  miles.  This  march,  too, 
was  performed,  for  the  most  part,  in  a  mountainous  region, 
so  strongly  fortified  by  nature  that  the  Spanish  govern 
ment,  and  after  it  the  Mexican,  never  dreamed  of  the 
possibility  of  its  being  invaded,  or  so  much  as  thought 
of  the  necessity  of  constructing  a  single  defensive  work 
with  a  view  to  such  a  result,  until  the  heads  of  our  columns 
already  began  to  show  themselves  on  the  steps  of  the 
mountains. 

The  Irish  World  of  October  5,  1878,  also  published 
this  brief  account  of  General  Shield's  career : 

War  soon  broke  out  with  Mexico,  and  he  was 
appointed  brigadier-general,  and  assigned  to  the  com 
mand  of  the  Illinois  volunteers.  He  served  under  General 
Taylor  on  the  Rio  Grande;  under  General  Wool  in  his 
campaign  against  Chihuahua,  and  next  under  General 
Scott,  where  he  entered  on  his  campaign  for  the  capture 
of  the  City  of  Mexico.  At  the  siege  of  Vera  Cruz  he 
distinguished  himself  for  activity,  energy  and  fearlessness. 
After  the  fall  of  Vera  Cruz  the  American  army  under 
General  Scott  had  to  encounter  the  whole  Mexican  army 
at  Cerro  Gordo,  the  strongest  natural  position  on  the  con- 


106  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

tinent.  Here  General  Shields  was  assigned  to  attack  the 
Mexican  reserve,  under  the  command  of  General  Santa 
Anna  in  person.  This  he  accomplished  with  such 
intrepidity  and  consummate  skill  that  he  fairly  sur 
prised  the  Mexican  force  and  swept  them  before 
him,  carrying  a  battery  of  six  pieces  of  cannon 
at  the  point  of  the  bayonet.  Unfortunately,  before 
this  battery,  he  received  a  terrible  wound,  deemed 
at  the  time  mortal — a  cannon  grapeshot  measuring  an 
inch  and  a  third  in  diameter  having  punctured  his  right 
lung,  tore  through  his  body,  and  passed  out  near  the  spine. 
To  the  surprise  of  everybody  and  the  astonishment  of  the 
medical  staff  of  the  army,  in  ten  weeks  he  was  again  in 
the  saddle  and  at  the  head  of  his  command.  He  entered 
the  Valley  of  Mexico  with  the  American  army  and  w^as  the 
first  American  to  plant  the  stars  and  stripes  in  the  captured 
city — his  brigade  consisting  of  the  New  York  volunteers, 
the  Palmettos  of  South  Carolina,  and  a  battalion  of  United 
States  marines. 

The  first  battle  fought  in  the  Valley  \vas  that  of  Con- 
treras,  where  the  enemy  were  strongly  posted  within  their 
intrenchments.  General  Persifer  Smith  was  sent  against 
them  in  the  afternoon,  and  General  Shields  was  sent  to 
join  him  the  same  night,  and,  being  senior  in  rank,  was 
entitled  to  take  command,  but  finding  that  General  Smith 
had  made  his  dispositions  to  make  an  attack  upon  the 
enemy  about  daybreak,  and  approving  of  the  arrange 
ments,  he  declined  to  deprive  General  Smith  of  the  honor 
of  the  achievement — "an  act  of  magnanimity,"  says  the 
historian,  "hardly  or  never  heard  of  in  military  history." 
He  served  under  him  next  morning,  and  aided  him  essen 
tially  in  the  attack,  which  was  eminently  successful. 

The  next  day  was  fought  the  battle  of  Churubusco, 
which  was  one  of  the  most  bloody  engagements  of  the  war. 
In  this  battle  General  Shields  was  assigned  the  command 
of  a  division  and  appointed  again  to  attack  the  Mexican 
reserve,  under  his  old  antagonist,  General  Santa  Anna. 
This  he  accomplished  with  rapid  and  fearless  audacity,  and 
although  the  enemy  were  five  to  one,  he  carried  their  posi- 


\ 

LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  107 

tion,  captured  their  artillery,  and  drove  them  broken  and 
shattered  into  the  City  of  Mexico ;  but  this  daring  exploit 
cost  him  the  lives  of  some  of  his  bravest  officers  and 
about  one-third  of  his  entire  command.  The  gallant  and 
noble  Palmetto  regiment  lost  half  its  number  in  killed  and 
wounded  on  that  bloody  field. 

Next  succeeded  the  storming  of  Chapultepec.  In 
this  he  was  again  seriously  wounded,  a  musket  ball  having 
torn  through  his  arm,  passing  out  near  the  elbow.  Not 
withstanding  the  wound,  he  pursued  the  enemy  to  the 
very  gates  of  the  city,  having  his  horse  shot  under  him. 
The  capture  of  the  city  followed,  and  peace  being  soon 
after  concluded,  he  returned  home  to  Illinois. 

Peterson,  in  his  history  of  American  wars  of  1812 
and  Mexico,  describing  the  battle  of  Chapultepec,  says : 

The  veteran  regiments  of  Riley  and  Smith,  conquerors 
already  on  one  field  that  day,  never  quailed.  Though 
from  their  position  they  could  but  indistinctly  see  the 
foe,  while  the  enemy  from  his  elevation  commanded  a 
complete  view  of  the  whole  field,  they  resolutely  main 
tained  the  fight,  cheering  to  each  other,  stimulated,  from 
time  to  time,  by  glimpses  caught  through  the  smoke  of 
the  white  flag  of  surrender,  which,  though  pulled  down 
as  often  as  hung  out,  betrayed  that  the  hearts  of  the  enemy 
were  beginning  to  fail.  Thrice  this  sign  was  seen,  and 
thrice  greeted  with  huzzas.  The  roar  of  six  pieces 
of  heavy  artillery  and  more  than  two  thousand  muskets, 
immediately  at  this  spot,  combined  with  the  wild  uproar 
now  going  on  at  the  tete-de-pont,  and  the  more  distant 
crash  of 'battle  from  the  division  of  Shields,  conspired  to 
make  the  scene  like  pandemonium,  a  resemblance  that 
was  increased  by  the  smoke  that  covered  the  battlefield, 
and  would  have  turned  day  into  night,  but  for  the  inces 
sant  and  lurid  fire  that  vivified  the  scene.  At  last,  the 
division  of  Worth,  having  carried  the  tete-de-pont,  a  fire 
was  opened,  as  \ve  have  seen,  on  the  rear  of  the  hacienda. 
The  enemy  held  out  still  for  half  an  hour  longer,  and 
then  hung  out  the  white  flag,  but  not  until  two  com 
panies  of  the  Second  Infantry,  led  by  Captains  Alexander 


108  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

and  Smith,  had  forced  the  work  with  the  bayonet  and 
entered  triumphantly. 

While  the  battle  had  raged  at  these  two  points, 
Shields,  reinforced  by  the  brigade  of  Pierce,  and  subse 
quently  by  the  Rifles,. had  waded  across  the  meadows  to 
the  left,  and  reached  by  a  winding  route  a  point  near  the 
Acapulco  road,  somewhat  in  the  rear  of  Churubusco. 
Here  he  found  himself  suddenly  opposed  by  four 
thousand  Mexican  infantry,  on  whose  sides  hov 
ered  three  thousand  cavalry.  Finding  it  impossible  to 
outflank  the  enemy,  he  concentrated  his  division,  with  a 
little  hamlet  as  its  sustaining  point,  and  began  a  resolute 
attack.  The  conflict  was  long,  hot  and  varied.  The 
troops  were  nearly  all  volunteers,  but  no  regulars  could 
have  behaved  with  more  heroism.  To  the  officers  is  par 
ticularly  owing  the  final  success  of  the  day.  Pressing  on 
at  the  head  of  their  troops,  they  led  wherever  duty  called, 
not  merely  showing  the  men  where  to  go,  but  rushing 
forward,  and  calling  on  them  to  foUow.  General  Pierce, 
still  suffering  from  a  hurt,  persisted  in  keeping  his  horse, 
and  fainted  at  last  from  exhaustion.  Colonel  Butler,  of 
the  South  Carolina  regiment,  who  had  risen  from  a  sick 
bed,  led  on  his  troops,  even  after  he  received  a  wound, 
and  fell  finally  at  the  head  of  the  column,  his  last  words 
being  "Keep  in  the  front  with  the  Palmetto*  flag!"  Such 
heroism  could  not  fail  of  victory.  The  enemy,  in  the  end, 
gave  way.  At  this  instant,  Worth,  having  carried  the 
tete-de-pont,  was  seen  sweeping  along  the  Acapulco  road, 
and,  soon  effecting  a  junction  with  Shields,  the  united 
forces  passed  onward  to  the  City  of  Mexico,  driving  the 
mass  of  fugitives  before  them  as  a  mountain  freshet 
whirls  away  opposing  dams  in  its  embrace,  At  the  head 
of  the  pursuit  rushed  the  powerful  dragoons  of  Colonel 
Harney.  The  chase  was  continued  by  this  bold  leader  to 
within  a  hundred  yards  of  the  city  gate,  not  drawing  rein 
until  a  masked  battery  opened  on  him.  Captain  Kearney 
lost  an  arm,  and  several  of  the  troop  were  wounded. 
Worth,  uncertain  of  the  plans  of  the  commander-in-chief, 
halted  with  the  main  body  of  the  forces  within  a  mile 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  109 

and  a  half  of  the  city.  Meantime,  Scott,  arriving  in  per 
son  at  Churubusco,  drew  up  in  front  of  the  captured 
hacienda,  where  he  was  received  with  tumultuous 
cheers  by  his  soldiers,  whom  he  complimented  on  the  spot 
for  their  gallantry. 

The  division  of  Quitman,  indeed,  had  conquered  as 
great,  if  not  greater  obstacles,  than  that  of  Pillow.  Before 
it  could  reach  the  foot  of  the  hill  it  had  cut  its  way  along 
a  causeway,  defended  by  ditches  and  batteries,  manned 
with  immense  numbers  of  the  enemy.  Reinforced  by 
General  Smith  and  the  Rifles,  however,  Quitman  gallantly 
struggled  along;  but  not  without  losing  Major  Twiggs 
and  Captain  Casey,  who  led  his  two  storming  parties.  At 
last  the  New  York,  Pennsylvania  and  South  Carolina 
volunteers,  eager  to  reach  the  hill  and  join  in  the  assault, 
leaped  from  the  causeway,  crossed  the  meadows  in  front, 
and,  attended  by  portions  of  the  storming  parties,  en 
tered  the  outer  inclosure  of  Chapultepec.  They  did  not 
effect  this  without  great  slaughter  on  their  part ;  but  their 
object  was  gained;  they  arrived  at  the  castle  simultane 
ously  with  the  men  of  Pillow,  and  entered  it  with  his  for 
lorn  hope.  Foremost  in  the  advance  were  Lieutenant 
Reid,  of  the  New  York  Volunteers,  and  Lieutenant  Steel, 
of  the  Second  Infantry.  Cheers  on  cheers,  breaking  from 
the  excited  conquerors,  now  shook  the  welkin  and  carried 
terror  to  the  heart  of  the  capital  itself.  The  garrison  still 
fought  in  detachments,  few  asking  quarter;  fewer,  alas, 
obtaining  it ;  for  the  Americans,  exasperated  by  the  cruel 
ties  of  Molino  del  Rey,  turned  the  rout  into  a  massacre. 
About  fifty  general  officers,  one  hundred  cadets  and  some 
private  soldiers  were,  however,  taken  prisoners.  The 
cadets  resisted  desperately,  some  being  killed  fighting, 
who  were  not  fourteen  years  of  age.  But  we  draw  a  veil 
over  this  sanguinary  day,  when  the  passions  of  men,  ex 
cited  to  frenzy,  made  them,  for  the  time,  like  demons. 
During  the  assault  the  American  batteries  threw  shells 
upon  the  enemy  over  the  heads  of  our  own  men,  and  thus 
effectually  prevented  the  hill  from  being  reinforced.  The 
castle  was  found  riddled  with  balls.  In  less  than  a  minute 


110  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

after  the  last  wall  was  surmounted,  the  great  flag  of  Mex 
ico  was  hauled  down,  and  the  stars  and  stripes,  shooting, 
meteor-like,  to  the  sky,  announced  that  Chapultepec  had 
fallen. 

Immediately  after  the  reduction  of  the  place,  the  com- 
mander-in-chief  arrived  in  person,  and,  ascending  to  the 
summit  of  the  hill,  from  which  the  approaches  to  the  city 
were  seen  as  on  a  map,  proceeded  to  direct  the  assault. 
Two  roads  led  from  the  foot  of  Chapultepec  to  the  gates 
of  the  town.  One,  on  the  left,  terminated  at  the  San 
Cosmo  Gate,  another,  on  the  right,  ended  in  the  Belen 
Gate.  Along  each  of  these  causeways  ran  an  aqueduct 
on  arches,  the  carriageway  passing  on  either  side.  The 
reconnoissances  on  the  preceding  day  had  convinced  Scott 
that  the  San  Cosmo  route  was  the  weakest,  and  accord 
ingly  he  had  intended  the  main  attack  to  be  made  here. 
For  this  purpose  he  had  ordered  Worth  to  turn  the  castle 
during  the  fight,  in  order  to  be  ready  to  advance  the  in 
stant  Chapultepec  had  fallen.  Pillow,  just  as  the  assault 
on  the  castle  was  about  to  begin,  had  sent  to  Worth  for 
reinforcements,  and  the  latter  had  dispatched  Clarke's  bri 
gade,  thus  reducing  his  forces  one-half;  nevertheless,  as 
soon  as  the  hill  was  stormed,  Worth  pushed  forward  to 
ward  Mexico,  though  having  but  a  single  brigade.  Scott, 
perceiving  his  weakness,  hastened  to  send  back  Clarke's 
brigade,  and  to  add  to  it  Cadwallader's;  and  having  left 
the  Fifteenth  Infantry  to  garrison  Chapultepec,  followed 
Worth  himself.  The  Americans  soon  reached  a  suburb, 
not  far  from  the  San  Cosmo  Gate,  where  they  found  the 
enemy  prepared  to  make  another  stand,  admirably  forti 
fied  behind  ditches,  and  among  houses.  The  moment 
Worth  came  within  range  a  furious  discharge  of  musketry 
was  opened  on  him,  the  Mexicans  firing  from  gardens, 
windows,  and  housetops.  Cadwallader's  howitzers  were 
promptly  ordered  to  the  front,  preceded  by  skirmishers 
and  pioneers,  with  crowbars  and  pickaxes,  to  force  win 
dow's  and  doors,  or  to  hew  their  way  through  walls.  Thus, 
literally  hewing  every  inch  of  their  progress,  the  assailants 
advanced,  and  by  evening  had  carried  two  batteries,  cleared 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  Ill 

the  village,  and  gained  a  position  close  to  the  San  Cosmo 
Gate.  Here,  at  eight  p.  m.,  Worth  posted  sentinels,  and 
took  up  his  quarters  for  the  night.  The  assault  on  the 
gate  was  reserved  for  the  morning  when  the  troops  should 
be  fresh;  and  the  gate  once  carried,  the  heart  of  the  city 
would  be  open  to  the  invaders. 

Meanwhile,  however,  the  ardor  of  Quitman  and  his 
troops  had  frustrated,  in  part,  the  intention  of  Scott,  by 
converting  the  attack  on  the  Belen  Gate  from  a  feigned  to 
a  real  assault.  As  we  have  seen,  only  a  portion  of  Quit- 
man's  men  had  participated  directly  in  the  storming  of 
Ghapultepec,  the  rest  having  been  retarded  by  the  defenses 
at  its  foot.  These  works,  however,  were  finally  carried, 
and  the  hill  having  fallen,  Quitman,  concentrating  his 
forces,  rushed  forward  along  the  Belen  causeway.  He  was 
met  by  a  terrific  fire  from  artillery  in  front,  and  by  crossfires 
from  batteries  on  the  flank ;  but,  nevertheless,  he  pressed 
on,  his  soldiers  availing  themselves  of  the  arches  of  the 
aqueduct  as  a  partial  cover,  running  from  one  to  the  other 
between  the  discharges  of  the  foe..  In  this  manner  they 
advanced,  riddled  by  the  fire  in  the  flank,  until  the  batteries 
on  the  sides  were  silenced  by  the  American  artillery. 

In  this  emergency  the  city  council  determined  to  make 
an  appeal  to  the  generosity  of  the  conquerors  and  accord 
ingly,  at  4  a.  m.,  on  the  following  morning,  a  deputation 
from  that  body  waited  on  Scott.  The  embassy  being  ad 
mitted  to  his  presence,  informed  him  of  the  flight  of  Santa 
Anna,  and  asked  terms  of  capitulation  in  favor  of  the 
churches,  citizens  and  municipal  authorities.  The  com- 
mander-in-chief  replied  that  it  was  too  late  to  offer  a 
capitulation,  for  the  city  was  at  his  mercy,  and  that  terms 
to  which  it  would  be  admitted  should  be  dictated  by  him 
self.  In  sorrow  and  alarm  the  deputation  took  its  leave, 
for  they  had  nothing  to  rely  on  but  the  clemency  of 
the  victors.  It  was  not  the  intention  of  the  American  Gen 
eral,  however,  to  take  advantage  of  the  defenseless  condi 
tion  of  the  citizens,  and,  except  a  contribution  exacted 
from  the  authorities,  Mexico  suffered  none  of  the  evils  at 
tendant  on  being  carried  by  assault.  It  is  to  the  honor  of 


112  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

the  American  army  that,  notwithstanding  its  severe  losses 
in  the  attack,  and  the  remembrance  of  the  many  cruelties 
perpetrated  by  the  enemy  when  in  the  ascendant,  its  en 
trance  into  the  capital  was  signalized  by  no  such  scenes  as 
took  place  at  Badajoz  and  San  Sebastian  under  Welling 
ton,  in  the  Peninsular  war.  No  conflagration  reddened 
the  sky;  no  murders  were  committed  that  plunder  might 
be  unchecked ;  no  women  were  violated ;  no  shrines 
stripped;  no  riot  and  drunkenness  prevailed.  Never,  in 
the  whole  range  of  modern  history,  has  a  city,  carried  bv 
assault,  exhibited  such  little  misconduct  on  the  part  of 
the  conquerors  after  the  battle  was  over. 

The  morning  had  just 'dawned — it  was  the  I4th  of 
September,  1847 — when  Scott  issued  his  orders  for  Quit- 
man  to  advance  to  the  great  square.  The  troops  of  Worth 
were  directed  to  enter  the  town  simultaneously,  but  to 
halt  at  the  Alameda  Park,  within  a  few  hundred  feet  of  the 
plaza.  This  was  clone  that  Quitman  might  have  the  honor 
of  hoisting  the  American  flag  on  the  national  palace,  he 
having  been  the  first  to  gain  a  foothold  within  the  walls 
of  the  city.  His  division  marched  rapidly  to  the  heart 
of  the  town,  as  if  fearing  to  be  anticipated,  and  at  7  a.  m. 
planted  the  stars  and  stripes  in  the  conquered  capital. 

JENKINS'    ACCOUNT    OF    THE    CAPTURE    OF    THE    CITY 

OF    MEXICO. 

From  three  to  four  hundred  yards  in  advance  of  the 
Belen  Gate,  on  the  Pieclad  causeway,  was  a  battery  with 
guns,  with  a  breastwork  for  infantry,  facing  the  \vest,  in 
tervening  between  it  and  the  garita.  At  the  gate  there 
was  a  battery  of  three  guns,  with  another  battery  of  four 
guns  eight  hundred  yards  in  its  front,  on  the  Chapultepec 
causeway.  East  and  north  of  the  garita  of  Belen  was  the 
citadel  with  its  fifteen  guns,  near  the  northwestern  angle 
of  which,  on  a  paseo  running  north  from  the  gate,  was  a 
battery  of  two  guns. 

The  remaining  regiments  of  General  Quitman's  di 
vision — the  New  York  and  South  Carolina  volunteers, 
under  Lieutenant-Colonel  Baxter  and  Major  Gladden,  and 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  113 

the  Second  Pennsylvania,  under  Lieutenant-Colonel  Geary, 
Colonel  Roberts  being  confined  to  a  sick  bed — led  by 
General  Shields,  who  had  solicited  the  command  of  the 
storming  parties,  but  had  been  refused  on  account  of  his 
rank,  after  proceeding  about  half  a  mile  along  the  cause 
way,  turned  to  the  left,  and  making  their  way  through  the 
fields  intersected  by  deep  ditches,  filled  with  water,  under 
a  severe  fire  of  grape  and  musketry,  approached  the  south 
ern  wall  of  Chapultepec.  The  Palmettos  broke  through  it, 
and  charged  up  the  height,  without  firing  a  gun.  Lieuten 
ant-Colonel  Baxter  being  mortally  wounded,  Major  Burn- 
ham  placed  himself  at  the  head  of  the  New  Yorkers  and 
entered  the  enclosure,  in  company  with  the  Second  Penn 
sylvania,  through  an  abandoned  battery,  to  the  left.  Lieu 
tenant  Reid,  with  his  company  of  the  New  York  regiment, 
and  a  company  of  marines,  moving  still  further  to  the  left, 
passed  through  the  breach  made  by  the  heavy  guns,  and 
was  soon  among  the  foremost  of  the  parties  who  had  as 
saulted  the  work  from  the  west.  A  portion  of  the  storm 
ing  party  from  General  Twiggs'  division,  under  Lieutenant 
Gantt,  of  the  Seventh  Infantry,  also  ascended  the  hill.  A 
simultaneous  rush  was  now  made  upon  the  east,  south 
and  west  of  the  castle.  Scaling  ladders  were  applied  on 
all  sides.  Major  Seymour,  of  the  Ninth  Infantry,  reached 
the  flagstaff  and  hauled  down  the  Mexican  standard,  and 
the  national  color  of  the  New  York  regiment,  the  first  on 
the  fortress,  was  displayed  by  Lieutenant  Reid,  while  the 
battle  was  raging  at  their  feet.  For  a  few  moments  the 
conflict  was  terrible.  General  Bravo  and  his  soldiers  made 
a  sturdy  defense.  The  eleves  of  military  school  fought 
bravely  and  gallantly.  Swords  clashed;  bayonets  were 
crossed  and  rifles  clubbed.  The  cruelty  of  the  enemy  at 
Casa  de  Mata  was  not  forgotten  ;  and  the  ramparts  and  bat 
teries  were  covered  with  those  who  had  fallen,  some 
maimed  and  disabled,  but  many  cold  and  stiff  as  the  rocks 
and  stones  that  formed  their  resting-place.  Carried  away 
with  indignation  for  a  moment,  the  American  soldiers 
seemed  inclined  to  make  no  prisoners ;  but  the  earnest  re 
monstrances  of  their  officers  checked  the  exhibition  of  a 


114  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

feeling,  which,  though  not  unprovoked,  would  have  sul 
lied  the  flag  under  which  they  fought.  Resistance,  how 
ever,  was  in  vain;  the  work  was  carried  on;  and  General 
Bravo  surrendered  himself  and  men  prisoners  of  war. 

As  soon  as  the  command  could  be  formed  and  sup 
plied,  with  ammunition,  General  Quitman  advanced  on  the 
Chapultepec  causeway,  the  more  direct  route  to  the  city. 
Meanwhile  Captain  Drum  had  brought  up  a  four-pounder 
captured  gun,  and  was  moving  along  the  causeway,  pour 
ing  a  constant  fire  upon  the  flying  Mexicans.  The  rifle 
regiment,  commanded  by  Major  Lorring,  formed  under 
the  arches  of  the  aqueduct,  and  the  remainder  of  General 
Smith's  brigade — the  First  Artillery  and  Third  Infantry, 
under  Major  Dimmick  and  Captain  Alexander — leveled 
the  parapets  and  filled  up  the  ditches  in  the  road,  so  as  to 
permit  the  passage  of  heavy  artillery.  This  being  done 
the  whole  column  was  put  in  motion. 

General  Scott  arrived  at  the  castle  shortly  after  its 
reduction,  and  immediately  ordered  Colonel  Clarke,  with 
his  brigade,  to  join  his  division,  and  also  dispatched  the 
brigade  of  General  Cadwallader  to  the  support  of  General 
Worth.  The  Ninth  Infantry  was  ordered  to  follow  the 
movement  of  General  Quitman,  and  the  Fifteenth  was 
designated  as  the  garrison  of  Chapultepec.  Siege  pieces 
were  likewise  directed  to  be  sent  forward  to  both  columns. 
Having  issued  these  orders,  General  Scott  proceeded  along 
the  road  taken  by  General  Worth.  Two  heavy  pieces 
under  Lieutenant  Hagner,  escorted  by  a  command  of  New 
York  Volunteers  and  marines,  under  Captain  Gallagher, 
and  two  pieces  and  a  ten-inch  mortar,  escorted  by  the  Fif 
teenth  Infantry,  followed  as  soon  as  they  could  be  got  in 
readiness.  Captain  Huger  also  sent  heavy  guns  to  General 
Quitman,  and  then  joined  the  column  of  General  Worth. 
The  first  obstacle  encountered  by  General  Quitman  was 
the  battery  between  the  castle  of  Chapultepec  and  the 
garita  of  Belen.  A  short  but  effective  fire  from  the  eight- 
inch  howitzer,  brought  up  by  Lieutenant  Porter,  directed 
by  Captain  Drum,  aided  by  Lieutenant-Colonel  Duncan's 
battery,  which  had  been  advanced,  by  direction  of  General 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  115 

Worth,  from  the  causeway  along  which  the  column  was 
moving,  supported  by  the  light  battalion,  over  a  cross 
route  to  within  four  hundred  yards  of  the  work,  together 
with  the  daring  bravery  of  the  rifle  regiment,  soon  cleared 
the  battery.  The  column  was  forthwith  reorganized  for 
an  attack  upon  the  work  of  the  garita.  The  Rifles,  inter 
mingled  with  the  South  Carolina  Volunteers,  led  the  ad 
vance,  supported  by  the  remainder  of  General  Quitman's 
division  and  the  brigade  of  General  Smith,  and  a  part  of 
the  Sixth  Infantry,  under  Major  Bonneville,  who  had  fallen 
into  this  road. 

Springing  boldly  from  arch  to  arch  of  the  aqueduct, 
the  advance  moved  upon  the  garita,  under  a  tremendous 
fire  of  grape,  canister  and  round  shot  from  the  battery, 
and  of  small  arms  from  the  paseo  on  their  left  and  the 
Piedad  causeway  on  their  right.  The  enemy  had  been 
completely  deceived  by  the  movements  of  General  Scott, 
and  did  not  recover  from  their  delusion  until  the  Ameri 
can  troops  were  seen  streaming  along  the  San  Cosine  and 
Chapultepec  causeways.  It  was  then  too  late  to  plant  new 
batteries,  or  shift  their  guns.  Still,  a  brave  defense  was 
made  at  the  Belen  Garita,  by  General  Terres,  who  com 
manded  the  forces  at  this  point,  supported  by  a  strong  re 
serve  under  General  Garey.  Santa  Anna  also  hastened 
thither ;  and  for  a  few  moments  the  conflict  was  warm  and 
animated. 

Several  rounds  of  canister,  thrown  from  a  sixteen- 
pounder  gun,  pushed  forward  to  the  head  of  the  American 
column  by  Lieutenant  Benjamin,  checked  the  annoying 
fire  of  the  Mexican  infantry  of  the  Piedad  causeway,  who 
were  soon  after  driven  back  by  the  Fourth  Artillery,  under 
Major  Gardner,  advancing  for  the  purpose  from  their  posi 
tion  near  the  church  of  La  Piedad.  Both  gun  and  how 
itzer  were  then  opened  on  the  garita.  The  rifles,  now 
under  Captain  Simonson,  Major  Loring  having  been  se 
verely  wounded,  from  their  partial  cover,  beneath  the 
arches  of  the  aqueduct,  picked  oft"  the  artillerists,  one  by 
one;  the  enemy's  infantry  refused  to  be  led  forward,  and 
the  removal  of  their  guns  was  commenced.  Discovering 


116  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

this,  General  Quitman  ordered  a  charge.  The  Americans 
sprang  forward  with  eager  impetuosity,  entered  the  work 
at  a  few  minutes  past  one  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  and  cap 
tured  two  of  its  guns.  General  Quitman  was  among  the 
first  at  the  garita,  and,  none  of  the  colors  having  yet  come 
up,  attached  a  silk  handkerchief  to  a  rifle,  and  waved  it 
over  the  battery, 'amid  the  joyous  shouts  of  his  brave  sol 
diers. 

The  garita  being  taken,  the  riflemen  and  South  Caro 
lina  Volunteers  rushed  on,  and  occupied  the  arches  of  the 
aqueduct,  within  one  hundred  yards  of  the  citadel.  The 
ammunition  of  the  heavy  guns  having  been  expended, 
Captain  Drum  turned  a  captured  nine-pounder  upon  the 
enemy,  and  served  it  with  good  effect,  until  the  ammuni 
tion  taken  with  it  was  also  expended. 

Daring  as  was  the  advance  of  the  American  column, 
they  had  proceeded  too  far  without  the  necessary  siege 
guns  and  ammunition.  Yet  they  held  their  ground 
firmly  under  a  most  appalling  fire.  Captain  Drum,  Lieu 
tenant  Benjamin,  and  a  number  of  their  men,  were  killed 
at  the  gun  which  had  been  run  forward  in  front  of  the 
garita,  waging  an  unequal  contest  with  the  heavy  artillery 
in  the  citadel.  When' the  enemy  perceived  that  the  Amer 
icans  had  expended  their  ammunition,  they  rallied  to  drive 
them  back  from  the  lodgment  which  had  been  effected. 
Repeated,  though  ineffectual,  sallies  were  made,  and  both 
sides  of  the  aqueduct  were  swept  by  the  iron  shower  poured 
from  the  citadel,  the  batteries  on  the  paseo,  and  the  build 
ings  on  the  right  of  the  garita.  An  attempt  to  enfilade 
the  left  flank  of  the  column  being  apprehended,  Captain 
Naylor  took  possession  of  a  low  sand-bag  defense,  about 
one  hundred  yards  to  the  left  of  the  causeway,  with  two 
companies  of  the  Second  Pennsylvania,  and  held  it  under 
a  severe  fire,  till  nightfall,  when  the  Mexican  batteries 
ceased  firing. 

Early  in  the  afternoon  General  Scott  had  returned  to 
Chapultepec.  The  remaining  brigade  of  General  Twiggs 
(Colonel  Riley's),  was  ordered  from  Piedad  to  support 
General  Worth,  and  Captain  Steptoe  was  directed  to 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  117 

rejoin  General  Quitman's  division  with  his  battery. 
Intrenching  tools  and  ammunition  were  also  sent  to  Gen 
eral  Quitman,  whose  men  were  busily  employed,  through 
out  the  night,  in  constructing  two  sand-bag  breastworks 
and  parapets,  at  the  garita  of  Belen,  upon  which  two 
heavy  guns  and  an  eight-inch  howitzer  were  placed  in 
battery  by  Captain  Step-toe,  Late  in  the  evening  General 
Shields  was  forced  to  retire  in  consequence  of  a  severe 
wound,  received  at  the  storming  of  the  castle,  but  his 
place  was  filled  by  General  Pierce,  who  reported  for  duty 
to  General  Quitman. 

Toward  the  latter  part  of  October,  1847,  Generals 
Quitman  and  Shields  returned  to  the  United  States,  and 
General  P.  F.  Smith  was  appointed  governor  of  Mexico. 


CHAPTER  IX. 


Noble  Rescue  of  Women  on  the  Eve  of  the  Capture  of  the  City  of 
Mexico — Poem  on  His  Noble  Deed — Unparalleled  in  Any  General's 
Career  Under  Similar  Circumstances — Election  to  United  States 
Senate. 


The  Irish  World  publishes  the  following. 

Before  the  capture  of  the  City  of  Mexico  an  English 
boy,  arrested  as  a  spy,  asked  private  audience  of  General 
Shields,  and  told  him  that  a  Mexican  desperado  had 
sought  his  sister's  hand,  and,  being  refused,  threatened 
vengeance.  To  accomplish  his  evil  purpose  he  had 
obtained  from  Santa  Anna  the  control  of  that  part  of  the 
city  in  which  the  boy's  father,  mother  and  two  sisters  lived ; 
had  hired  a  gang  of  villains,  who  were  to  plunder  the 
house,  keep  the  booty,  and  deliver  the  girl  to  the  tender 
mercies  of  this  Mexican  scoundrel.  Properly  disguised, 
the  boy  had  entered  the  American  ranks  to  beseech  assist 
ance  of  General  Shields.  The  emergency  was  a  rare  one. 
It  was  certain  that  the  commander-in-chief  of  the  army 
would  not  authorize  a  rescue.  To  abandon  the  girls  to 
their  fate  was  foreign  to  the  nature  of  Shields.  He  took 


118  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

a  sudden  resolve,  called  for  volunteers,  selected  four  hun 
dred  men,  and  entered  the  beleaguered  city  unperceived. 
The  ladies  were  rescued,  the  alarm  was  given  by  the 
bewildered  Mexicans,  and  the  daring  band  was  obliged 
to  cut  their  way  through  a  host  of  enemies.  They  reached 
the  ramparts  in  safety,  and  returned  to  the  camp  with 
the  rescued  ones.  By  that  time,  however,  both  armies 
were  alarmed,  and  a  scene  of  bustle  and  confusion  ensued. 
General  Scott  flew  into  a  terrible  rage  when  he  heard  the 
story,  and  threatened  all  the  penalties  of  a  court  martial 
on  the  culprit  (Shields)  for  such  gross  disobedience  ot 
orders.  The  young  ladies  succeeded  in  pacifying  the 
choleric  old  hero,  and  Shields  entered  the  city  with  him 
after  its  capture,  completely  reinstated  in  his  favor. 

T  heard  the  General  confirm  the  above  statement. 
He  said  that  after  reaching  the  house  in  which  the  ladies 
lived,  they,  unobserved,  had  almost  reached  the  American 
lines  when  their  presence  was  discovered,  and  considerable 
firing  was  the  result. 

My  recollection  is  that  no  casualties  resulted  from 
the  rescue,  but  that  early  the  next  morning  inquiries  were 
made  as  to  the  cause  of  the  firing  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Shields'  camp,  and  excuses  and  evasive  answers  having 
been  made  to  inquiries,  and  the  presence  of  the  ladies 
in  question  in  the  General's  tent  becoming  known, 
General  Scott  rode  up,  called  for  Shields  and  censured 
him  for  the  rashness  of  his  act,  which,  he  said,  might  have 
imperiled  the  success  of  the  work  in  hand.  It  \vas  well 
known  that  General  Scott  was  a  strict  disciplinarian,  and 
many  feared  that  trouble  would  result  from  his  interview 
with  General  Shields,  which  closed  in  the  following  man 
ner:  General  Scott  said  to  Shields,  "I  will  court  martial 
you,  take  the  stars  from  your  shoulders  and  disgrace  you." 
When  Shields  replied,  "You  can  court  martial  me,  the 
court  may  deprive  me  of  my  stars,"  but,  striking  his  breast 
with  his  right  hand,  he  said,  with  considerable  feeling, 
"No  one  but  Shields  can  disgrace  me."  During  these 
remarks  the  ladies,  on  their  knees,  in  tears,  implored 
General  Scott  to  forgive  their  deliverer  from  a  fate  worse 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  119 

than  that  of  death,  and  Shields'  bravery  that  day  at  the 
storming  of  Chapultepec  and  at  Belen  Gate  and  the  signal 
services  he  thereby  rendered  the  nation,  made  General 
Scott  grant  the  request  of  the  ladies.  It  was  well  known 
that  he,  like  every  otther  gallant  soldier  in  that  army,  hon 
ored  Shields  for  the  great  risk  that  he  took  to  defend  the 
honor  of  women.  The  English  ladies  soon  thereafter 
went  to  England  and  sent  General  Shields,  as  a  memento 
of  the  affair,  two  breastpins  connected  by  a  gold  chain 
an  inch  and  a  half  in  length.  One  contained  a  large 
and  valuable  diamond,  surrounded  by  beautiful  emeralds, 
while  the  other  contained  a  smaller  diamond.  The  larger 
diamond,  with  its  emeralds,  should  appear  in  photographs 
of  him.  I  saw  it  in  March,  1894,  at  his  homestead  in 
Carrollton,  Missouri,  and  advised  his  widow  to  leave  it  as 
an  heirloom  to  her  only  daughter.  I  have  vainly  endeav 
ored  to  procure  a  photograph  of  it,  as  well  as  of  a  pair 
of  dueling  pistols  presented  to  him  by  Judge  O'Gorman 
of  New  York,  inscribed,  "Presented  by  Richard  O'Gorman 
to  his  friend,  General  James  Shields,"  and  a  handsome 
double-barreled  pistol,  appropriately  inscribed,  the  gift 
of  General  Frank  P.  Blair,  whose  statue  Missouri  has  this 
year  placed  in  statuary  hall,  with  that  of  Senator  Benton, 
being  Missouri's  quota  to  that  national  temple  of  fame. 
Benton  and  Shields  served  in  the  Senate  in  1850,  and 
thereafter,  and  Blair  and  Shields  fought  together  for  the 

Union. 

INCIDENT  OF  THE   SIEGE  OF  MEXICO. 

In  Memory  of  General  James  Shields,  Hero  of  Three  Wars   and  United 
States  Senator  from  Three  States. 

By  Kate   Brownlee   Sherwood. 

"Halt!"     'Twas  the  picket's  ringing  cry, 

And  'mong  the  cactus  spears, 
A  little,,  trembling,  wild-eyed  lad 

Lay  smitten  by  his  fears. 
"Who  comes  there?"     Not  a  soul  replied, 

And  now  the  sturdy   guard 
Puts  down  his  gun  and  drags  the  boy, 

Half  naked,  from  the  sward. 
All  this  was  thirty  years  ago, 
As  many  of  you  know; 


120  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

It  happened  when  the  boys  in  blue 
Laid   siege  to   Mexico. 

"What  do  you  here,  you  skulking  spy?" 

The  rough-voiced  soldier  said, 
"To-morrow,  boy,  prepare  to  die, 
A  bullet  through  your  head!" 
The  lad  sprung  up  in  terror  then 

And  clasped  the  soldier's  knees, 
And  moaned  and  moaned  between  his  sobs 

Such  broken  cries  as  these: 
"Oh,  soldier,  by  your  English  speech, 

And  English  face,  I  know 
You  will  not  harm  a  Union  lad 
Who   flees   from   Mexico." 

The  soldier's  face  grew  grave  and  sad, 

He  thought  him  of  his  home, 
And  how  just  such  a  lad  as  this 

Wrould  joy  to   see  him  come. 
Love  lent  a  pathos  to  his  speech, 

A  radiance  to  his  face. 
Till,  grown  more  bold,  the  stranger  boy 

Made  known  his  piteous  case: 
"Oh,  sir,  unto  the  General 

One  moment  let  me  go, 
To  plead  for  her  who  cries  for  help 

In  cruel  Mexico." 

No  braver  man  than  General  Shields 

E'er  wore  the  Union  blue; 
He  curbed  his  soldier  spirit 

Till  he  heard  the  story  through; 
Then  kissed  the  forehead  of  the  lad 

And  said,  "Godspeed  us  all; 
This  night  my  men  shall  pass  the  squares 

Of  Santa  Anna's  Hall." 
The  soldier's  blood  was  hot  and  high, 

He  chafed  that  he  might  go 
To  rescue  her  who  blessed  our  flag 

In  bonds  of  Mexico. 

The  camp  was  in  commotion, 
..  'Twas  a  cry  for  volunteers, 

Men  fit  for  any  danger, 

Men  void  of  any  fears. 
"  'Tis  not  for  fame  or  conquest, 
To  storm  redoubt  or  line; 
To  save  a  woman's  honor 

Let  hearts  and  swords  combine! 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS,  121 

A  woman  of  the  Union, 

Who  says  a  Spaniard  "No,"' 
We'll  dare  a  thousand  deaths  to  wrest 

From   alien   Mexico!" 

By  twos  and  tens  they  gather — 

Four  hundred  men  and  true — 
New  York  and  Illinois  they  came, 

And   South   Carolina,   too; 
By  twos  and  tens  they  gather 

To  follow   General  Shields, 
The  man  who  never  falters, 

The  man  who  never  yields. 
By  twos  and  tens  they  scale  the  heights, 

They  pass  the  sleeping  foe, 
And  one  fair  woman  clasps  our  flag 

In  haughty  Mexico. 

What  ho!  the  alarm!  the  foe  awakes! 

The  muskets  flash  and  roar, 
The  streets  are  filled  with  angry  men, 

A  cloud  behind,  before! 
"Unsheath  your  swords  and  follow  me!" 

The   General   led  the  blow; 
And  no  man  spared  his  sword  for  her 

They  bore  from  Mexico. 

'Tis  morning  in  the  plaza, 

And  General  Scott  is  there. 
His  conquering  hosts  around  him, 

And  cheers  rend  all  the  air. 
Above  the   stately  palaces 

The  Stars  and  Stripes  are  run, 
And  music  joins  her  clamor 

With  the  booming  of  the  gun. 
But  not  a  braver  deed  was  done, 

The  conquering  siege  will  show, 
Than  General  Shields  for  woman  wrought, 

Defying  Mexico. 

Shout,  little  refugee,  and  toss 

Your  cap  for  General  Shields, 
The  man  who  never  falters, 

The  man  who  never  yields,; 
Break  forth  in   merry  laughter 

With  the  sister  by  your  side; 
She  shall  be  no  ruffian's  mistress, 

She  shall  be  a  soldier's  bride! 
Cheers  for  the  brave  four  hundred, 

With  their  faces  to  the  foe, 
And  three  times  three  for  General  Shields 

Who  fought  at  Mexico. 


122  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


CHAPTER     X. 


Army  Disbanded — Elected  United  States  Senator  from  Illinois  for 
Term  of  Six  Years — Appointed  on  Several  Very  Important  Com 
mittees — Favored  Land  Grants  to  Soldiers  and  Sailors,  to  Agri 
cultural  Colleges  and  Railroads  to  Develop  the  West — Homestead 
Law — Against  Slavery. 


On  July  28,  1848,  Shields'  brigade  was  disbanded, 
and  on  his  return  to  the  United  States  his  achievements 
were  on  everyone's  tongue,  and  brilliant  receptions 
awaited  him  everywhere.  At  Springfield,  111.,  he  had  a 
perfect  ovation,  and  I  regret  exceedingly  that  I  find  it 
impossible  to  reproduce  the  proceedings  on  that  occasion, 
when  the  greatest  men  of  Illinois,  in  public  and  private, 
assembled  to  greet  him  and  sound  his  praises.  His 
speech  on  that  occasion  was  eloquent  and  impressive,  I 
am  assured,  by  those  who  heard  it.  Cerro  Gordo,  on  one 
of  the  principal  railroads,  no  doubt,  was  named  in  his 
honor,  and  nothing  that  Illinois  could  control  was  too 
good  for  him.  This  fact  is  evident  from  his  election,  a 
few  months  afterward,  United  States  Senator  from  Illinois 
for  the  term  of  six  years,  over  Sidney  Breese,  the  former 
Senator,  and  one  of  the  greatest  judges  Illinois  ever 
produced. 

For  the  purpose  of  showing  how  strictly  he  attended 
to  his  duties  as  senator,  from  the  first,  I  submit  somewhat 
at  length  the  details  of  the  proceedings  in  the  Senate  dur 
ing  the  first  session.  A  man's  standing  in  public  assem 
blies  is  shown  by  the  committees  that  he  is  selected  to  serve 
upon.  Shields  was  appointed  to  several  of  the  most 
important,  and  was  made  chairman  thereof.  His  expe 
rience  as  land  commissioner  made  him  invaluable  on  the 
committee  of  public  lands,  one  of  the  most  important  in 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  123 

the  country,  and  his  record  as  a  warrior  found  recognition 
in  his  appointment  to  the  committee  on  military  affairs. 

Nothing  was  so  important  for  the  welfare  of  the  West 
as  the  improvement  of  rivers  and  the  building  of  railroads 
and  canals,  upon  which  the  development  of  the  western 
states  and  territories  depended.  No  one  understood  this 
better  than  Senator  Shields,  and  no  one  more  faithfully 
assisted  in  committee  and  on  the  floor  in  securing  neces 
sary  legislation  therefor.  Homestead  laws,  aid  to  agricul 
ture,  of  colleges,  and  similar  measures,  secured  the  strictest 
attention  from  him,  as  the  records  of  the  Senate  will  verify. 

On  Monday,  December  3,  1849,  Mr-  Mangum  pre 
sented  the  credentials  of  the  Hon.  James  Shields  of  Illinois, 
elected  as  senator  by  the  Legislature  of  Illinois,  for  the 
term  of  six  years,  commencing  on  the  4th  day  of  March, 
1849,  which  were  read,  and  the  oath  prescribed  by  law 
was  administered  to  Mr.  Shields,  and  he  took  his  seat  in 
the  Senate. 

The  Congressional  Record,  among  other  matters  and 
things  in  which  he  took  part,  states  that,  on  "December 
31,  1849,  on  motion  by  Mr.  Shields,  ordered  that  leave 
be  granted  to  withdraw  from  the  files  of  the  Senate  the 
papers  in  relation  to  a  railroad  from  the  Falls  of  Ohio 
River  to  Alton,  111." 

January  15,  1850.  Mr.  Shields:  Mr.  President,  I 
present  a  petition  from  soldiers  who  served  in  the  Florida 
war,  asking  that  they  may  receive  the  same  bounty  land 
that  was  granted  to  soldiers  of  the  Mexican  war.  I  trust 
the  petition  will  receive  a  favorable  consideration  from 
the  Senate,  and  that  the  petitioners  will  be  put  on  the 
same  footing  with  those  soldiers  who  served  in  the  war 
with  Mexico.  I  move  its  reference  to  the  Committee  on 
Public  Lands. 

Mr.  Borland:  If  the  honorable  Senator  will  permit 
me  to  make  a  suggestion  to  him,  I  will  inform  him  that 
similar  memorials  have  been  referred  to  the  Committee 
on  Military  Affairs.  They  are  now  undegoing  inves 
tigation  there,  and,  as  one  report  on  the  subject  will  answer 
all  the  purposes  desired,  it  is  better  that  all  the  memorials 
of  this  character  should  go  to  that  committee. 


124  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

Mr.  Shields:  I  accept  the  Senator's  suggestion. 
The  petition  was  then  referred  to  the  Committee  on  Mili 
tary  Affairs. 

Mr.  Shields  also  presented  a  petition  from  George  W. 
Billings,  asking  Congress  to  cause  the  proper  officers  of 
the  Navy  Department  to  complete  a  contract  with  him 
for  water-rotted  hemp,  according  to  advertisement  and 
his  bid,  which  was  referred  to  the  Commitee  on  Naval 
Affairs. 

Mr.  Shields :  I  am  also  requested  to  present  the 
memorial  of  Captain  Mansfield  Lovell,  of  the  artillery 
service  of  the  United  States.  The  intention  of  the  memo 
rial  is  to  improve  the  condition  of  the  light  artillery  of  the 
service  of  the  United  States,  and  it  is  seconded  also  by 
a  strong  letter  from  Colonel  Bragg,  of  that  service.  I 
move  its  reference  to  the  Committee  on  Military  Affairs, 

The  motion  \vas  agreed  to. 

January  22,  1850.  Mr.  Shields,  from  the  Committee 
on  Public  Lands,  to  which  was  referred  the  numerous  peti 
tions  of  the  registers  and  receivers  of  the  General  Land 
Office,  asking  increase  of  compensation  for  entry  of  mili 
tary  bounty  land  warrants,  reported  "An  act  respecting 
the  compensation  of  the  registers  and  receivers  of  the 
United  States  land  offices  for  locating  Mexican  bounty 
land  warrants." 

On  February  13,  1850,  Mr.  Shields,  from  the  Com 
mittee  on  Public  Lands,  to  which  was  referred  the  bill 
granting  the  right  of  way  and  making  a  donation  of  land 
to  the  State  of  Illinois,  in  aid  of  the  construction  of  the 
Central  Railroad,  reported  back  the  same,  with  amend 
ments,  which  were  ordered  to  be  printed. 

Mr.  Shields,  also  from  the  same  committee,  reported 
a  bill  making  a  donation  of  land  to  the  State  of  Illinois,  in 
aid  of  the  construction  of  the  Mount  Carmel  and  Alton 
Railroad,  which  was  read  and  ordered  to  a  third  reading. 

Mr.  Shields,  further,  from  the  same  committee,  to 
which  was  reported  the  bill  for  the  benefit  of  the  Territory 
of  Minnesota,  reported  the  same,  with  amendments,  which 
were  ordered  to  be  printed. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  125 

On  February  13,  1850,  Mr.  Shields  presented  the 
memorial  of  the  Rock  Island  and  LaSalle  Railroad  Com 
pany,  asking-  a  grant  of  public  land  to  aid  in  the  construc 
tion  of  their  railroad,  which  was  referred  to  the  Committee 
on  Public  Lands. 

On  February  25,  1850,  Mr.  Shields  presented  a  peti 
tion  of  citizens  of  Illinois,  representing  that,  in  their  opin 
ion,  the  right  to  life  includes  the  right  to  a  place  to  live, 
and,  in  accordance  with  that  opinion,  they  ask  the  passage 
of  a  law  granting  the  freedom  of  the  public  lands  in  limited 
quantities,  to  actual  settlers  not  possessed  of  other  lands ; 
which  was  referred  to  the  Committee  on  Public  Lands. 

February  27,  1850.  Mr.  Shields,  from  the  Committee 
for  the  District  of  Columbia,  to  which  was  referred  the  peti 
tion  of  Owen  Connolly,  reported  the  following  resolu 
tion :  Resolved,  That  there  be  paid  to  Owen  Connolly, 
out  of  the  contingent  fund,  a  sum  equal  to  the, amount  of 
his  pay  from  the  time  of  his  removal  as  one  of  the  police 
of  the  Capital,  on  the  3Oth  day  of  April,  1849,  to  tne 
present  time,  in  consideration  of  injuries  sustained  by  him 
in  the  discharge  of  his  public  duties,  and  which  have  dis 
abled  him  for  life. 

The  said  resolution,  having  been  read  a  first  and  sec 
ond  time,  was  considered  as  in  Committee  of  the  Whole, 
when  its  further  consideration  was  postponed  until  to-mor 
row. 

March  u,  1850.  Mr.  Shields,  from  the  Committee 
on  Public  Lands,  to  which  was  referred  the  bill  granting 
to  the  State  of  Missouri  the  right  of  way  and  a  donation 
of  public  lands  for  making  a  railroad  from  the  town  of 
Hannibal  to  the  town  of  St.  Joseph,  in  said  State,  reported 
back  the  same  without  amendment,  and  recommended  its 
passage. 

On  March  14,  1850,  Mr.  Shields  presented  the  memo 
rial  of  a  convention  of  citizens  of  Illinois,  held  at  Vandalia, 
in  that  State,  asking  the  right  of  way  and  a  portion  of  the 
public  land  to  the  Mississippi  and  Atlantic  Railroad  Com 
pany,  incorporated  by  the  state  of  Illinois,  which  was  re 
ferred  to  the  Committee  on  Public  Lands. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

March  15,  1850.  Mr.  Shields,  from  the  Committee 
on  Military  Affairs,  to  which  was  referred  the  several 
memorials  of  seamen  who  served  in  the  Gulf  and  Pacific 
squadrons  during  the  Mexican  war,  in  favor  of  allowing 
them  bounty  lands,  submitted  a  report  on  the  same,  which 
was  ordered  to  be  printed,  accompanied  by  a  bill  granting 
a  bounty  in  land  to  the  seamen  of  the  Gulf  and  Pacific 
squadrons  equal  to  that  already  granted  to  soldiers  and 
marines  who  served  in  the  Mexican  war;  which  was  read 
and  passed  to  a  second  reading. 

On  March  22,  1850,  Mr.  Shields  presented  a  petition 
of  citizens  of  Illinois,  setting  forth  that,  in  their  opinion, 
the  right  to  life  includes  the  right  to  a  place  to  live,  in 
accordance  with  which  opinion,  they  ask  the  freedom  of 
the  public  lands,  in  limited  quantities,  to  actual  settlers; 
which  was  referred  to  the  Committee  on  Public  Lands. 

Also,  of  citizens  of  Wabash  County,  in  the  State  of 
Illinois,  deploring  the  evils  of  war,  and  asking  that  some 
substitute  may  be  adopted  therefor;  which  was  referred  to 
the  Committee  on  Foreign  Relations. 

Also, of  citizens  of  Illinois,  asking  that  all  aliens  maybe 
removed  from  office,  and  that  a  part  of  the  constitution 
of  Illinois,  in  relation  to  aliens,  may  be  expunged. 

Also,  of  citizens  of  the  same  State,  setting  forth  tne 
danger  of  abolition,  or  the  freeing  of  negroes,  to  the  citi 
zens  of  the  United  States  and  their  posterity,  and  urging 
Congress  to  check  at  once  the  principle,  as  it  was  already 
alienating  the  affections  of  citizens  from  each  other,  and 
emboldening  the  advocates  of  abolition — that  nature  nor 
nature's  God  ever  did  make  the  negroes  equal  with  the 
white  citizens :  one  or  the  other  is  superior,  and  that  supe 
riority  is  in  the  white  people,  besides  having  high  authority 
to  believe  the  negroes  were  made  for  servants  for  the  white 
citizens  and  their  posterity. 

Also, of  citizens  of  Chicago,  111.,  asking  the  abolition 
of  slavery  and  the  slave  trade  in  the  District  of  Columbia  ; 
otherwise,  that  the  seat  of  government  may  be  removed 
to  some  free  State  nearer  the  geographical  center  of  the 
nation. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  127 

Also,  of  legal  voters  of  Wabash  County,  Illinois,  ask 
ing  that  the  Sabbath  may  be  more  sacredly  observed  by 
the  different  departments  of  government,  and  that  the 
transportation  of  the  mail  on  the  holy  Sabbath  may  be 
stopped,  setting  forth  that,  as  we  profess  to  be  a  Christian 
nation,  and  governed  by  laws  based  on  the  Holy  Scrip 
tures,  and  as  this  great  and  flourishing  republic  is  held  up 
in  the  order  of  Providence  as  an  example  of  free  govern 
ment  for  all  the  nations  of  the  earth,  it  therefore  behooves 
the  representatives  to  uphold  it  in  its  purity. 

These  several  petitions  were  received  and  ordered  to 
lie  on  the  table. 

On  March  2,  1850,  Mr.  Shields  presented  a  memorial 
of  citizens  of  Illinois,  asking  that  the  public  lands  may  be 
granted  in  limited  quantities  to  actual  settlers;  which  was 
referred  to  the  Committee  on  the  Public  Lands. 

April  8,  1850,  Mr.  Shields,  from  the  Committee  on 
Public  Lands,  to  which  was  referred  the  memorial  of  a 
convention  held  at  Vandalia,  asking  a  grant  of  land  for 
a  railroad  from  a  point  opposite  to  Terre  Haute,  Ind.,  to 
a  point  on  the  Mississippi  River,  etc.,  reported  a  bill  grant 
ing  to  the  State  of  Illinois  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  a 
railroad  from  a  point  opposite  to  Terre  Haute,  Ind.,  to 
a  point  near  Illinoistown,  111. ;  which  \vas  read  and  passed 
to  a  second  reading. 

April  29,  1850.  Mr.  Shields  on  the  Illinois  Central 
Railroad:  Now,  sir,  this  road,  as  contemplated  by  the 
amendment  of  the  senator  from  Alabama,  will  form  a  great 
national  thoroughfare,  connecting  the  northern  part  of 
Illinois,  by  the  way  of  St.  Louis,  with  Mobile,  as  well  as 
connecting  Boston  and  the  other  eastern  cities  by  the 
same  route,  through  Illinois,  with  St.  Louis  and  New 
Orleans,  and  Mobile.  Perhaps  there  are  no  States  in  the 
Union  more  interested  in  this  work  than  those  of  the  East, 
represented  by  senators  now  objecting  to  the  bill.  For 
the  benefit  of  senators  who  speak  of  the  loss  which  the 
United  States  Government  may  sustain  in  consequence 
of  this  grant,  I  wish  to  state  that  when  land  has  been  ten 
or  fifteen  years  in  the  market,  the  receipts  therefrom  do 


128  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

not  defray  the  expenses  of  the  machinery  of  government 
employed  in  their  sale.  In  this  case,  therefore,  the  Gov 
ernment  can  lose  nothing-,  for  these  lands  generally  have 
been  in  the  market  for  twenty  years,  and  this  road  will  be 
the  means  of  making  them  salable.  And  I  am  not  sure 
that  the  Government  would  not,  in  the  end,  be  benefited 
by  laying  it  down  as  a  general  principle  that,  where  lands 
have  been  in  the  market  for  fifteen  or  twenty  years,  they 
shall  be  appropriated  to  this  purpose,  than  which  I  know 
none  more  advantageous  and  beneficial,  of  making  public 
roads.  I  will  state,  as  the  question  has  been  asked  by  the 
senator  from  Maine,  that  in  a  portion  of  Illinois  the  pub 
lic  lands  have  been  in  market  for  some  twenty  years,  and 
are  now  unsalable ;  and  that  of  this  million  and  a  half  of 
acres  proposed  to  be  granted,  there  will  not  be  three  hun 
dred  thousand  perhaps  that  is  in  any  other  condition.  The 
amount  looks  large  on  paper,  I  confess,  but  what  I  have 
stated  in  regard  to  it,  all  who  have  experience  in  the  public 
lands  will  acknowledge  to  be  the  truth.  I  would  beg 
of  my  friend  from  Wisconsin,  if  I  had  any  influence  with 
him,  to  withdraw'  his  amendment.  I  can  assure  him  he 
will  not  only  seriously  embarrass  this,  bill,  but  if  he  pro 
pose  his  amendment,  even  to  the  bill  in  which  his  own 
State  is  interested,  he  may  defeat  the  very  end  he  proposes 
to  attain.  I  will  state  further,  that  if  the  bill  as  it  is  will 
be  any  injury  to  Illinois,  that  injury  will  be  for  the  benefit 
of  the  United  States,  and  we  who  represent  Illinois  are 
responsible  to  our  people  for  that  injury.  The  Senator 
says  that  unless  his  amendment  prevails,  it  will  retard  the 
settlement  of  our  State.  Perhaps  it  may,  but  we  are  will 
ing  to  receive  the  bill,  even  under  this  apprehension,  and 
I  hope  the  Senator  from  Wisconsin  will  permit  us  to 
accept  it,  even  if  he  considers  it  detrimental  to  us.  I  will 
say  to  him  that  when  he  proposes  a  bill  of  a  similar  char 
acter  for  his  own  State,  I  will  not  attempt  to  interfere  with 
what  Wisconsin  may  consider  for  her  interests.  I  repeat, 
I  am  gratified  that  the  senator  from  Alabama  has  intro 
duced  the  amendment;  he  is  perfectly  assured,  as  I 
am,  through  some  knowledge  derived  from  a  connection 


LIFE     OF     GEN,    SHIELDS.  129 

with  the  public  lands,  that  if  you  give  away  all  those  refuse 
lands  in  every  State  that  have  been  in  market  ten,  fifteen  or 
twenty  years,  for  the  purpose  of  making  roads,  you  cannot 
appropriate  them  to  any  national  purpose  more  advan 
tageous.  By  referring  to  the  reports  of  the  land  commis 
sioners,  you  will  find  it  to  be  the  case  that  where  lands  in 
any  land  district  have  been  in  the  market  twenty  years,  the 
revenue  derived  from  their  sale  will  hardly  defray  the 
expenses  of  the  land  office.  I  am  not  prepared  to  cipher 
out  this  matter  just  at  the  moment,  but  I  am  sure  I  can 
convince  any  gentleman  of  the  truth  of  this  proposition. 
Now,  the  State  of  Illinois  has  never  derived  a  dollar  from 
the  Government ;  our  rivers  and  lake  are  left  without 
improvement,  and  we  pay  into  the  treasury  a  large  amount 
of  money  every  year,  from  which  we  derive  nothing  in 
return.  And  yet  if  we  come  here  and  ask  for  the  grant 
of  a  few  acres  of  refuse  lands,  we  are  met  with  such  objec 
tions  as  senators  have  urged  this  morning.  You  are 
expending  money  every  day  on  the  seaboard,  while  this 
immense  State,  contributing  as  largely  as  it  does  to  the 
revenues  of  the  General  Government,  is  totally  neglected. 
And  even  when  we  ask  for  this  feeble  aid  from  the  Gov 
ernment,  for  a  work  that  is  to  benefit  Maine  quite  as  much 
as  it  will  Illinois — which  is  to  connect  Boston  with  New 
Orleans,  the  North  with  the  South — we  are  met  with  a 
mere  quibble  about  a  few  acres  of  land.  This  road  is  to 
run  from  the  northern  part  of  Illinois  right  into  Kentucky 
almost,  and  if  my  friend  from  Kentucky  will  give  me  his 
aid,  I  am  willing  to  continue  it  quite  into  his  State.  I  have 
no  objections  to  it,  believing,  as  I  do,  that  purposes  of 
this  kind  are  the  most  beneficial  and  advantageous  to 
which  this  refuse  public  domain  can  be  appropriated. 

I  hope,  therefore,  that  my  friend  from  Wisconsin  will 
withdraw  his  amendment  to  this  bill,  and  let  us  manage  it 
in  our  own  way.  I  take  great  interest  in  the  bill  which 
he  proposes,  and  promise  him  my  assistance  in  securing 
its  passage,  whether  it  does  or  does  not  incorporate  the 
principle  of  his  proposed  amendment. 

May  7,    1850.     Mr.    Shields,    from    the    Committee 

9 


130  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

on  Military  Affairs,  to  which  was  referred  the  memorial 
of  Colonel  J.  R.  Creecy,  asking  remuneration  for  services 
rendered  and  expenses  incurred  in  raising  and  subsisting 
volunteers  for  the  Mexican  war,  submitted  a  report,  which 
was  ordered  to  be  printed,  accompanied  by  a  bill  for  the 
relief  of  Colonel  James  R.  Creecy;  which  was  read  and 
passed  to  a  second  reading. 

On  May  20,  1850,  Mr.  Shields  presented  two  memo 
rials  of  citizens  of  Illinois,  asking  that  the  right  of  way 
and  a  portion  of  the  public  land  may  be  granted  to  the 
Terre  Haute  and  Alton  Railroad  Company,  to  aid  in  the 
construction  of  their  railroad ;  which  were  referred  to  the 
Committee  on  the  Public  Lands. 

Also,  two  memorials  from  citizens  of  the  same  State, 
asking  an  appropriation  for  removing  obstructions  to  the 
navigation  of  the  Calumet  River  in  that  State ;  which  were 
referred  to  the  Committee  on  Commerce. 

On  May  22,  1850,  Mr.  Shields  presented  a  memorial 
of  citizens  of  Illinois,  asking  a  grant  of  the  right  of  way 
and  a  portion  of  public  land  to  the  Terre  Haute  and  Alton 
Railroad  Company,  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  the  said 
road;  which  was  referred  to  the  Committee  on  Public 
Lands. 

On.  June  5,  1850,  Mr.  Shields  presented  a  petition  ot 
citizens  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  asking  that  no  State  may 
hereafter  be  admitted  into  the  Union  whose  constitution 
does  not  expressly  prohibit  slavery  within  its  limits. 

Also,  a  petition  from  citizens  of  the  same  State,  ask 
ing  that  slavery  may  be  prohibited  by  law  in  the  Territories 
of  the  United  States. 

Also  a  petition  from  citizens  of  the  same  State,  asking 
that  slavery  and  the  slave  trade  may  be  abolished  in  the 
District  of  Columbia,  or  the  seat  of  government  removed 
therefrom ;  all  of  which  several  petitions  were  ordered  to 
lie  on  the  table. 

On  June  TO,  1850,  Mr.  Shields  presented  a  memorial 
of  citizens  of  Illinois,  asking  a  grant  of  the  right  of  way 
and  a  portion  of  public  land  to  the  Terre  Haute  and  Alton 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  131 

Railroad  Company;  which  was  referred  to  the  Committee 
on  Public  Lands. 

First  Session  Thirty-first  Congress.     Volume  21,  Part  2. 
July  i,  1850.     Bounty  Lands  to  Seaman. 

On  the  motion  of  Mr.  Shields,  the  Senate  proceeded 
as  in  Committee  of  the  Whole,  to  the  consideration  of 
senate  bill  No.  152,  being  "A  bill  granting  a  bounty  in  land 
to  the  seamen  of  the  Gulf  and  Pacific  squadrons,  equal  to 
that  already  granted  to  soldiers  and  marines  who  served 
in  the  Mexican  war." 

Mr.  Shields :  I  move  to  amend  by  inserting  in  the 
fifth  line,  after  the  word  "to"  the  words  "petty  officers 
and,"  so  as  to  make  it  read  "petty  officers  and  non-com 
missioned  officers." 

The  amendment  was  agreed  to. 

The  bill  was  then  reported  to  the  Senate,  and  the 
amendment  was  concurred  in. 

The  Vice-President :  The  question  is  on  ordering 
the  bill  to  be  engrossed  for  a  third  reading. 

Mr.  Yulee :  I  hope  that  question  may  lie  over  for  the 
present.  It  may  be  found  advisable  that  this  bill  should 
be  attached  as  an  amendment  to  the  bill  which  has  come 
to  us  from  the  House,  and  I  think  also  that  its  provisions 
should  be  extended,  so  as  to  embrace  another  class  of  sea 
men.  I  hope  the  Senate  will  permit  the  bill  to  lie  oil  the 
table  till  another  morning. 

Mr.  Shields :  This  bill  merely  provides  for  the  sea 
men  who  were  engaged  in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  and  on  the 
Pacific  coast  during  the  war  with  Mexico,  who  suffered 
more,  in  fact,  than  the  soldiers.  The  object  of  the  bill  is 
to  put  them  on  an  equal  footing  with  the  soldiers.  I  may 
state  that  I  have  letters  every  day  from  these  gallant  tars, 
and  they  do  not  suspect  that  there  is  a  man  in  the  Senate 
who  will  oppose  this  bill,  and  they  would  be  far  from 
suspecting  that  the  chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Naval 
Affairs  would  oppose  it. 

Mr.  Yulee :  They  will  learn,  for  the  first  time,  from 
the  speech  of  the  honorable  senator  from  Illinois,  that 


132  LIFE     OF     GEN,    SHIELDS. 

the  chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Naval  Affairs  is 
opposed  to  it.  I  have  expressed  no  such  opinion.  I  have 
said,  on  the  contrary,  that  justice  might  require  an  enlarge 
ment  of  the  bill  so  as  to  include  others ;  and  also  that  there 
should  be  a  discrimination,  so  that  those  who  have  received 
prize  money  should  be  put  on  a  different  footing  from 
those  who  have  not.  I  said  I  thought  it  might  be  advis 
able  to  attach  this  as  an  amendment  to  the  bill  of  the 
House,  granting  bounty  lands  to  a  large  class  of  persons 
not  heretofore  provided  for.  For  these  reasons,  I  have 
thought  it  best  that  it  should  lie  on  the  table,  that  it  may 
be  so  modified  that  all  classes  may  be  provided  for. 

But  I  would  state  to  the  senator  from  Illinois  some 
facts,  of  which  lie  may  not  be  aware,  but  which  have  come 
to  the  knowledge  of  the  committee  to  which  I  think  this 
should  go.  I  understand  that  a  large  portion  of  the  sea 
men  who  served  on  the  Mexican  coast  received  prize 
money.  The  men  of  one  squadron  were  entitled  to  the 
money  from  ten  or  fifteen  ships  captured  by  them. 
Whether  they  ever  received  the  money  or  not,  I  do  not 
know,  but  I  understand  the  officers  received  it.  All  these 
matters  are  proper  to  be  investigated  by  the  committee, 
and  if  the  senator  from  Illinois  will  consent  to  let  it  lie 
on  the  table  for  a  few  clays,  we  can  ascertain  what  amend 
ments  may  be  proposed  to  improve  the  bill. 

Mr.  Davis,  of  Mississippi:  When  the  Committee  on 
Military  Affairs  took  charge  of  this  question,  they  had  no 
intention  whatever  to  trespass  upon  the  rights,  privileges 
and  duties  of  the  Committee  on  Naval  Affairs.  This  bill 
was  referred  to  the  Committee  on  Naval  Affairs,  because 
it  was  confined  to. that  pe^tkm  of  the  naval  and  marine 
corps  who  had  served  on  shore  and  who  were  not  included 
in  the  original  law.  The  bill  reported  by  my  colleague 
on  the  Military  Committee  (Mr.  Shields)  contains  a  pro 
vision  merely  for  the  marines  and  sailors  who  served  on 
shore  as  infantry,  and  not  for  those  seamen  who  merely 
served  on  board  of  vessels.  Had  it  related  to  this  class 
of  seamen,  then  I  grant  the  Chairman  of  the  Committee 
on  Militarv  Affairs  that  the  matter  would  belong  partly  to 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  133 

that  committee.  I  was,  however,  merely  going  to  state 
that  it  was  on  account  of  the  service  these  marines  ren 
dered  on  shore  as  infantry  that  the  military  committee 
thought  proper  to  take  charge  of  the  case.  If  it  be 
thought  necessary  to  amend  the  bill,  I  have  no  objection 
whatever  to  its  being  referred  to  the  Committee  on  Naval 
Affairs,  and  I  hope  my  colleague  will  agree  to  it. 

Mr.  Shields :  I  agree  entirely  with  my  colleague  from 
Mississippi,  and  I  will  consent  to  this  bill  being  referred 
to  the  Committee  on  Naval  Affairs.  I  will,  however,  take 
occasion  to  correct  a  slight  mistake  with  regard  to  the  prize- 
money.  I  do  not  believe  that  any  of  them  have  gotten  prize- 
money.  I  know  of  no  case  in  which  they  have  had  an 
opportunity;  and  I  hope  the  matter  will  be  fully  investi 
gated  by  the  committee,  because  I  have  the  statement  of 
the  officers  and  of  the  department,  as  well  as  of  the  poor 
sailors  themselves;  and  they  will  see  that,  whether  they 
were  entitled  to  prize-money  or  not,  they  never  received 
any.  If  the  honorable  Chairman  of  the  Committee  on 
Naval  Affairs  makes  the  motion  to  refer  this  bill  to  that 
committee,  I  am  perfectly  willing  that  it  should  be  so 
referred. 

July  2,  1850.  Mr.  Shields,  from  the  Committee  on 
Military  Affairs,  to  which  was  referred  the  memorial  of 
Ward  B.  Burnet,  asking  the  repayment  of  the  expenses 
incurred  by  the  Common  Council  of  the  City  of  New  York 
in  raising  volunteers,  reported  a  bill  to  reimburse  the 
Common  Council  of  New  York  City  for  expenditures  made 
for  the  First  Regiment  of  New  York  Volunteers;  which 
was  read  and  passed  to  a  second  reading. 

On  July  16,  1850,  on  motion  by  Mr.  Shields,  the  Sen 
ate  proceeded  to  the  consideration  of  the  joint  resolution 
from  the  House  of  Representatives,  granting  old  brass 
guns  to  the  Jackson  Monument  Committee.  He  urged  its 
immediate  passage,  on  the  ground  that  the  preliminary 
preparations  were  complete,  and  that  the  men  were  ready 
to  cast  the  statue. 

No  amendment  having  been  proposed,  the  joint  res 
olution  was  reported  to  the  Senate,  and  ordered  to  be  read 


1U  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

a  third  time,  and  was  read  a  third  time,  and  passed.  Mr. 
Shields,  from  the  Committee  on  Public  Lands,  to  which 
was  referred  the  bill  to  authorize  the  State  of  Illinois  to 
select  the  balance  of  the  lands  to  which  she  is  entitled  under 
the  act  of  2d  March,  1827,  granting  land  to  aid  that  state 
in  opening  a  canal  to  connect  the  waters  of  Illinois  River 
and  those  of  Lake  Michigan,  reported  back  the  same  with 
out  amendment. 

On  July  17,  1850,  Mr.  Shields  presented  a  memorial 
of  citizens  of  Illinois,  asking  a  grant  of  the  right  of  way 
and  a  donation  of  public  lands  to  the  Terre  Haute  and 
Alton  Railroad  Company,  incorporated  by  that  state ; 
which  was  referred  to  the  Committee  on  Public  Lands. 

On  July  1 8,  1850,  on  motion  by  Mr.  Shields,  the  Sen 
ate,  as  Committee  of  the  Whole,  proceeded  to  consider 
Senate  bill  No.  10 — being  for  the  benefit  of  the  Territory 
of  Minnesota,  with  the  amendment  reported  thereto. 

Tlie  question  being  taken  upon  agreeing  to  said 
amendment,  it  was  agreed  to. 

The  bill  was  then  reported  to  the  Senate,  the  amend 
ment  was  concurred  in,  and,  no  further  amendment  being 
proposed,  the  bill  \vas  ordered  to  be  engrossed  for  a  third 
reading. 

Mr.  Shields  called  for  the  third  reading  of  the  bill. 

July  23,  1850.  Mr.  Shields:  I  ask  the  Senate 'to 
take  up  bill  No.  267.  The  object  of  the  bill  is  to  classify 
the  clerks  in  the  War  Department,  and  to  equalize  their 
salaries.  It  has  been  reported  by  the  Committee  on  Mili 
tary  Affairs,  and  I  presume  will  met  with  no  opposition. 

The  bill  to  provide  for  the  classification  of  the  clerks 
in  the  military  bureaus,  and  to  equalize  their  salaries,  was 
then  read  a  second  time,  and  considered  by  the  Senate,  as 
in  Committee  of  the  Whole. 

Mr.  Downs:  This  seems  to  be  a  very  important  bill, 
and  I  should  like  to  know  where  it  came  from.  It  is  too 
important  a  measure  to  be  taken  up  and  passed  on;  the  spur 
of  the  moment,  without  consideration.  It  seems  to  pro 
vide  for  a  great  many  extra  and  large  salaries,  and  it 
appears  to  me  that  it  would  be  rather  hasty  to  dispose  of 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  135 

so  important  a  measure  without  more  information  on  the 
subject. 

Mr.  Shields :  I  will  state,  for  the  information  of  the 
Senator  from  Louisiana,  that  this  bill  does  not  increase 
the  number  of  clerks  at  all.  It  leaves  them  just  as  they 
were  with  regard  to  numbers.  It  merely  classifies  them, 
and  equalizes  and  graduates  their  salaries.  It  does  not 
increase  their  number,  but  it  is  to  put  the  War  Department 
on  the  same  footing  with  the  other  departments,  which,  at 
the  present  is  not  the  case.  This  is  all  the  change  which 
is  contemplated.  This  bill  has  been  reported  by  the  Mili 
tary  Committee,  and  has  been  lying  on  the  table  for  a 
considerable  time. 

Mr.  Davis,  of  Mississippi :  I  hope  there  is  no  neces 
sity  for  explaining  further  the  object  of  the  bill.  Its 
design  is  well  known,  both  to  the  Senate  and  the  country. 
It  must  also  be  well  known  that  in  the  organization  of 
new  bureaus,  the  clerks  in  these  departments  are  receiving 
higher  compensation  than  those  of  the  older  departments. 
In  the  War  Department,  which  is  the  oldest,  the  clerks 
have  been  receiving  a  less  compensation  than  in  some  of 
the  others.  Sir,  I  believe  there  is  no  class  of  the  com 
munity. so  poorly  paid,  according  to  their  attainments  and 
the  duties  which  they  have  to  perform,  as  the  clerks  in 
the  bureaus.  There  are  frequently  to  be  found  there  men 
of  high  classical  attainments,  and  who  render  very  impor 
tant  services  to  the  country ;  and  it  is  no  reflection  on  the 
heads  of  the  bureaus  to  say  that  it  not  infrequently  occurs 
that  the  clerks  are  more  competent  than  they  are.  In  all 
the  oldest  bureaus,  the  law  bears  in  this  way  with  peculiar 
hardship,  and  so  it  has  been  considered  by  every  com 
mittee  who  have  examined  this  subject,  from  1815  to  this 
day.  The  bill  which  is  now  before  the  Senate  is  the  same 
that  was  reported  last  session  of  the  Congress,  and  I  can 
add  no  better  reason  for  its  passage  than  those  which  I  then 
gave  to  the  Senate,  and  hope  the  bill  will  be  passed  without 
objection. 

Mr.  Downs :  1  did  not  rise  to  offer  any  objection  to 
the  bill,  but  merely  to  obtain  such  information  in  regard 


136  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

to  it  as  appeared  to  be  necessary.  And,  having  obtained 
such  information  as  satisfies  me,  from  the  Chairman  of  the 
Military  Committee,  I  have  no  objection  to  the  passage 
of  the  bill.  It  appeared  to  me  to  be  a  very  important  bill, 
and  as  I  knew  nothing  of  its  provisions,  I  was  anxious  to 
know  what  they  were. 

The  bill  was  then  reported  back  to  the  Senate,  ordered 
to  be  engrossed  for  a  third  reading,  and  was  subsequently 
read  a  third  time  and  passed. 

July  24,  1850.  Mr.  Shields,  from  the  Committee  on 
the  Public  Lands,  to  which  \vas  referred  the  bill  granting 
the  right  of  way  and  making  a  grant  of  land  to  the  State 
of  Indiana  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  a  railroad  from  a 
point  on  the  boundary  line  between  Indiana  and  Illinois, 
near  its  intersection  with  Lake  Michigan,  to  the  city  of 
Indianapolis,  and  a  branch  to  intersect  the  Southern  and 
Michigan  Railroad  at  or  near  a  point  where  the  same  enters 
said  State  of  Indiana,  reported  back  the  same  without 
amendment,  and  recommended  its  passage. 
August  14,  1850.  Mr.  Shields,  on  Protest  Against  Admit 
ting  California : 

I  do  not  see  that  the  fact  of  excluding  this  protest 
from  the  journal  of  the  Senate  will  tend,  in  the  slightest 
degree,  to  weaken  the  arguments  which  are  therein  set 
forth.  The  paper  will  go  to  the  country,  whether  you 
enter  it  upon  your  journal  or  not;  and  so  far  as  I  can  see, 
the  Senator  from  Mississippi  has  not  urged  anything 
against  it  that  has  any  force. 

I  agree  with  the  Senator  from  Massachusetts  that, 
according  to  parliamentary  usage,  this  protest  ought  not 
to  be  recorded  on  your  journal.  But,  sir,  there  are  two 
rights,  which  when  urged  respectfully,  I  think,  ought  never 
to  be  denied — the  right  of  petition  and  the  right  of  com 
plaint.  Now,  I  go  for  the  right  of  petition  in  all  cases,  with 
out  respect  to  the  character  of  the  petition,  except  where  it 
is  unconstitutional.  I  look  upon  this  as  a  complaint — a 
complaint  of  a  minority  which  is  couched  in  the  most 
respectful  terms.  They  ask,  as  a  favor,  as  I  understood 
the  honorable  senator  from  Virginia,  to  have  this  protest 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  137 

put  upon  the  journal,  and  I  hold  that  it  is  only  generous 
and  magnanimous  to  grant  them  that  privilege.  At  the 
same  time,  let  it  be  understood  that  it  is  not  establishing 
a  precedent,  or  a  right  to  be  acted  upon  in  future. 

August  26,  1850,  Mr.  Shields,  from  the  committee  on 
public,  lands,  to  which  was  referred  house  bill  No.  244,  be 
ing  the  bill  granting  bounty  land  to  certain  officers  and 
soldiers  who  have  been  engaged  in  the  military  service 
of  the  United  States,  reported  back  the  same  with  sundry 
amendments,  which  were  ordered  to  be  printed,  and  the 
bill  was  made  the  special  order  for  to-morrow  at  12  o'clock. 

August  28,  1850.     Bounty  Land  Bill. 

Mr.  Shields :  I  move  to  postpone  the  prior  special 
orders  for  the  purpose  of  taking  up  the  bill  "granting 
bounty  land  to  certain  officers  and  soldiers  who  have  been 
engaged  in  the  military  service  of  the  United  States."  It 
is  a  bounty  land  bill  which  the  house  has  passed  in  a  lib 
eral  spirit,  but  which  has  heretofore  been  kept  back  in 
the  Senate  for  the  purpose  of  allowing  other  important 
measures  to  pass.  I  hope  it  will  be  received  in  the  same 
spirit  which  actuated  the  House,  and  that  it  will  be  con 
sidered  and  disposed  of. 

Mr.  Bradbury :  I  perceive,  from  the  manner  in  which 
business  is  transacted,  that  it  will  be  impossible  ever  to 
reach  the  business  on  the  table.  I  hope  that  we  may  be 
permitted  to  take  up  the  special  orders  in  their  order,  and 
dispose  of  them  without  departing  from  that  order.  I 
moved  this  morning  to  lay  on  the  table  a  resolution  by 
which  it  was  proposed  to  change  the  rules  of  the  Senate, 
without  having  an  opportunity  to  explain  my  reasons  at 
the  time  it  was  pending.  I  wish,  therefore,  now  to  say 
that  I  did  it  because  I  desired  that  we  might  have  an  op 
portunity  to  get  through  with  the  business  in  its  regular 
order.  I  think  it  is  too  late  in  the  session,  and  that  we 
have  too  much  important  business  before  us,  to  undertake 
at  this  late  day  to  engage  in  amending  our  rules.  I  hope 
the  senator  will  consent  to  let  this  matter  come  up  in  its 
order,  and  probably  we  shall  soon  reach  it. 

Mr.  Shields :     I  do  not  wish  to  waste  the  time  of  the 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

Senate  in  debate,  and  I  will  only  say  that  this  bill  has  been 
kept  back  in  the  committee,  though  pressed  most  earnestly 
by  the  House,  for  the  purpose  of  permitting  the  fugitive 
slave  bill  and  others  of  that  character  to  pass.  We  deter 
mined  not  to  interfere  with  the  progress  of  those  important 
measures,  and  I  now  appeal  to  the  liberality  of  the  Senate 
to  take  up  and  dispose  of  this  bill,  which,  I  think,  can  be 
done  in  a  very  short  time. 

Mr.  Downs  :  I  have  not  examined  this  bill,  and,  there 
fore,  do  not  know  at  present  the  course  which  I  shall  pur 
sue  in  regard  to  it.  It  is  undoubtedly  a  bill  of  great  im 
portance  and  will  perhaps  give  rise  to  considerable  dis 
cussion.  I  would  therefore  suggest  to  the  senator  from 
Illinois,  whether  it  is  not  better  to  make  it  the  special 
order  for  some  particular  time?  We  certainly  cannot  get 
through  with  it  now,  and  I  am  disposed,  therefore,  to  pro 
ceed  with  the  current  business  of  the  Senate  and  dispose 
of  that  while  the  opportunity  offers.  I  agree  with  the 
senator  from  Maine,  that  it  is  time  we  should  take  up  the 
calendar  and  act  on  it,  which  I  believe  we  have  not  done 
this  session.  Everything  has  been  taken  up  out  of  its 
order.  If  the  senator  will  designate  a  particular  day  for 
the  consideration  of  this  bill,  I  will  agree  to  it,  but  I  can 
not  consent  to  act  upon  it  thus  suddenly. 

Mr.  Cass:  I  hope  the  Senate  will  agree  to  take  up 
this  bill,  inasmuch  as  it  concerns  a  vast  number  of  persons 
who  have  rendered  important  services  to  the  government, 
and  is  simply  a  proposition  to  give  them  land,  as  has  been 
given  to  others  under  similar  circumstances.  It  was  de 
bated  in  the  House  a  month  or  six  weeks  ago,  and  I  ven 
ture  to  say  that  if  it  be  postponed  another  day  there  is  not 
one  member  of  the  Senate  who  will  look  more  into  the 
subject  than  he  has  already  done.  I  think  we  are  as  fully 
competent  to  commence  and  go  on  with  it  now  as  at  any 
time.  I  repeat,  it  affects  a  vast  number  of  very  worthy 
men. 

Mr.  Badger :  I  desire  merely  to  say  that  if  this  bill  can 
be  disposed  of  in  the  course  of  the  next  half  hour,  I,  for 
one,  have  no  objection  to  its  being  taken  up,  but  it  is  in 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  139 

the  recollection  of  senators  that  when  we  adjourned  yester 
day  it  was  with  the  understanding  that  at  I  o'clock  to-day 
the  Senate  would  resume  the  consideration  of  executive 
business  and  finish  the  work  so  auspiciously  commenced 
yesterday.  If  the  bill,  as  I  suppose  will  be  the  case,  will 
give  rise  to  opposition,  it  will,  for  the  purpose  I  speak  of, 
the  executive  session,  be  fatal,  and  I  hope,  therefore,  the 
Senate  will  not  take  it  up. 

Mr.  Shields:  I  am  really  sorry  to  find  so  much  op 
position  to  the  taking  up  of  this  bill.  We  have  consumed 
almost  as  much  time  in  discussing  mere  preliminary  ques 
tions  as  would  have  served  to<  dispose  of  the  measure. 
This  bill,  on  my  motion,  was  made  the  special  order  for 
yesterday,  and  in  order  not  to  interfere  with  other  matters 
it  was  allowed  to  lie  on  the  table,  and  now  this  morning 
has  been  consumed  in  a  similar  way.  The  Senate  seems 
disposed  not  to  consider  it. 

Mr.  Cass :     Call  for  the  yeas  and  nays. 

Mr.  Shields :  Really,  I  think  there  is  not  much  chance 
here  for  a  modest  man.  I  will  say  to  my  friends  from 
North  Carolina  and  Louisiana  that  if,  after  the  amend 
ments  proposed  by  the  committee  are  adopted,  the  bill 
gives  rise  to  discussion,  I  will  immediately  consent  to  the 
postponement  of  its  further  consideration  to  another  day. 
All  I  ask  now  is  an  opportunity  to  amend  it,  as  proposed 
by  the  committee. 

The  motion  to  postpone  the  prior  orders  prevailed 
and  the  bill  was  taken  up  for  consideration. 

Mr.  Shields :  The  committee  on  the  public  lands  have 
reported  several  amendments,  in  which  they  ask  the  con 
currence  of  the  Senate. 

The  amendments  were  then  read.  The  fifth  caused 
much  discussion  and  was  finally  postponed  until  the  fol 
lowing  day. 

August  29,  1850.     Bounty  Land  Bill. 

Mr.  Shields :  I  move  to  postpone  the  consideration 
of  the  prior  special  orders  that  the  Senate  may  proceed 
to  the  consideration  of  the  bill  "granting  bounty  land 


140  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

to  officers  and  soldiers  who  have  been  engaged  in  military 
service  in  the  United  States." 

The  motion  was  agreed  to. 

Mr.  Shields  then  went  on  to  say:  Mr.  President,  the 
objections  which  \vere  urged  by  the  senator  from  Virginia 
and  others  yesterday  have,  I  think,  very  great  force  in 
them.  On  consideration  I,  for  one,  as  a  member  of  the 
committee,  believe  that  it  is  very  imprudent  to  insist  upon 
this  proviso.  It  would  not  only  endanger  and  hazard  the 
bill,  which  I  am  very  anxious  should  pass,  but  I  think  it 
is  going  a  little  too  far,  as  suggested  by  the  gentleman 
from  Virginia,  to  throw  this  burden  upon  the  treasury  in 
any  event.  I  am  willing  that  we  should  surrender  the 
whole  proviso ;  I  will  not  insist  upon  it.  But  it  is  a  great 
object  to  prevent  this  scrip  from  floating  about  in  the 
community  as  a  species  of  speculating  circulation.  The 
amendment  of  the  gentleman  from  Virginia  would  have 
the  effect  of  throwing  into  the  market  a  very  large  amount 
of  land  scrip,  which  would  be  assignable,  of  course,  ad 
libitum,  and  would  be  likely  to  circulate  over  the  country 
and  fall  into  the  hands  of  speculators.  This  is  the  great 
objection  that  \ve  Western  men  have  to  it.  This  is  a  gen 
eral  measure.  It  applies  to  the  whole  country.  We  of  the 
West  are  not  specially  interested  in  it,  for  it  will  prevent 
land  from  being  settled.  This  is  as  beneficial  to  New 
England  as  it  is  to  Illinois,  so  far  as  that  is  concerned. 
But  I  see  a  strong,  I  see  a  very  powerful  objection  to 
throwing  this  scrip  into  the  market  for  the  sake  of  specu 
lation.  I  hope,  then,  that  the  senator  from  Virginia  will 
withdraw  his  amendment,  and  let  this  proviso  be  voted 
down,  as  I  am  willing  it  should  be.  I  see  a  great  deal 
of  force  in  the  argument  urged  by  the  gentleman  from 
Virginia,  so  far  as  the  Eastern  States  are  concerned.  It 
did  not  strike  me  in  that  light  before.  I  am  aware  that 
volunteers  and  soldiers  who  reside  in  the  East  and  in  the 
South  will  find  it  very  inconvenient  to  make  these  entries. 
I  think  the  argument  very  forcible  in  that  respect.  My 
only  fear  is  that  speculators  will  derive  the  whole  benefit 
from  the  scrip.  However,  I  prefer  that  this  amendment 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  141 

should  prevail  rather  than  the  one  which  the  senator 
threatens,  and  I  do  not  see  that  this  amendment  can  affect 
the  bill  very  materially.  It  may  be  a  convenience  to  per 
sons  here  in  the  East,  in  Virginia,  North  Carolina  and 
South  Carolina,  and  all  along  the  eastern  part  of  the  coun 
try.  If  such  be  the  effect,  I  have  no  objection. 

September  4,  1850.  Mr.  Soule  presented  a  bill  for 
creating  a  mail  line  between  New  Orleans  and  Vera  Cruz. 
Mr.  Shields  made  an  amendment,  as  follows : 

Let  us  make  it  read  "from  Mobile  or  New  Orleans," 
so  as  to  leave  it  optional  with  the  postmaster-general  to 
select  either  place.  I  am  in  favor  of  the  gentleman's  bill, 
and  I  heartily  return  my  thanks  to  him  for  introducing  it. 
I  believe  it  will  have  a  very  excellent  effect  upon  the  busi 
ness  operations  of  the  country.  I  believe  it  is  highly  im 
portant  to  open  a  trade  with  Mexico  by  \vay  of  Tampico 
and  Vera  Cruz.  But  I  wish  the  postmaster-general  to  have 
the  privilege  of  selecting  between  Mobile  and  New  Or 
leans  as  the  terminus  in  this  country. 

Mr.  Shields'  amendment  was  rejected. 

On  September  5,  1850,  Mr.  Shields  presented  the  pe 
tition  of  citizens  of  Illinois,  asking  the  establishment  of  a 
mail  route  from  Pittsfield  to  Montezuma,  in  Pike  County, 
in  that  state,  which  was  referred  to  the  committee  on  the 
postoffice  and  post  roads. 

September  16,   1850.     Bounty  Land  Bill. 

The  President :  The  first  special  order  is  a  bill  from 
the  House  entitled,  "An  act  granting  land  to  certain  offi 
cers  and  soldiers  engaged  in  military  service  in  the  United 
States." 

Mr.  Mangum :  Mr.  President,  I  think  it  of  great  im 
portance  that  we  should  dispose  of  the  business  pending 
in  executive  session.  The  president  ought  to  be  allowed 
to  have  his  nominations  decided  upon.  I  therefore  move 
to  lay  this  bill  on  the  table,  for  the  purpose  of  moving 
that  the  Senate  proceed  to  the  consideration  of  execu 
tive  business. 

Mr.  Shields :  Will  the  gentleman  withdraw  the  mo 
tion  for  a  few  minutes? 


U2  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

Mr.  Mangttm :     Certainly. 

Mr.  Shields :  Mr.  President,  I  hope  the  senator  from 
North  Carolina  will  not  persist  in  his  motion.  This  bounty 
land  bill  has  been  before  the  Senate  for  several  weeks. 
It  has  been  postponed  from  day  to  day  and  from  time 
to  time.  I  have  yielded  to  almost  every  measure,  and 
now,  when  it  comes  up  at  the  close  of  the  session  and 
when  it  is  burdened  with  amendments,  it  is  to  be  post 
poned  again.  I  had  no  wish  to  go  into  this  subject.  But 
I  regret  exceedingly  that  it  is  proposed  now  to  reject  this 
bill.  After  all,  the  bill  is  of  no  very  great  magnitude.  It 
merely  gives  bounties  to  the  surviving  soldiers  of  our  past 
wars,  and  to  such  of  those  surviving  soldiers  as  have  re 
ceived  no  bounty.  Nearly  all  our  soldiers  have  received 
bounty.  This  bill  will  only  appropriate  a  few  millions  of 
acres  at  best,  and  what  are  a  few  millions  out  of  the  vast 
domain  which  we  have?  Yet  this  bill  has  been  put  off  from 
day  to  day  and  from  time  to  time  upon  every  little  pre 
text.  And  now,  when  it  comes  up  at  the  close  of  the  ses 
sion,  it  is  to  be  postponed  again. 

I  now  call  upon  the  friends  of  this  bill,  if  we  have  a 
majority  of  these  old  soldiers,  to  stand  by  the  bill,  and 
let  it  be  defeated  or  let  it  pass.  Let  us  meet  it  candidly. 
Let  us  treat  it  as  such  a  bill  ought  to  be  treated.  Let 
us  not  kill  it  by  postponement — by  procrastination.  Let 
us  meet  the  question  at  once.  If  these  men  are  not  en 
titled  to  bounty,  give  them  none.  If  your  old  soldiers 
have  no  claim  upon  you,  let  the  bill  be  defeated.  But  this 
is  not  the  way  to  treat  such  men.  They  have  been  treated 
with  indifference  and  with  superciliousness  here,  from  day 
to  day. 

Sir,  if  there  be  any  government  under  heaven  that 
ought  to  pay  its  soldiers  well,  this  is  the  government.  And 
here,  in  this  bill,  is  a  little  pitiful  allowance  of  land — two 
or  three  millions  out  of  your  immense  domain,  out  of  the 
world  of  vacant  lands  you  have,  and  you  hesitate  to  give 
it  to  these  men  who  have  earned  it  by  their  bravery.  I 
have,  day  after  day,  and  time  after  time,  given  way  to 
everybody  and  everything.  And  now,  when  this  bill  comes 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  143 

up  at  the  end  of  the  session,  it  is  to  be  procrastinated 
again.  If  you  postpone  this  bill  now,  you  may  as  well 
kill  it  at  once.  If  it  is  to  be  killed,  do  it  by  a  direct  vote 
and  not  by  postponement  in  this  way.  Treat  it  as  you 
ought  to  treat  such  a  measure.  Treat  it  as  you  ought  to 
treat  a  measure  for  the  benefit  of  your  old  soldiers.  I 
do  not  want  to  discuss  the  question.  I  have  not  discussed 
it.  I  have  avoided  discussion  on  this  subject.  But  with 
me  it  is  a  matter  of  feeling.  I  say  again,  if  these  old  sol 
diers  have  friends  enough  in  this  body,  I  want  them  to 
stand  by  this  bill  until  it  is  defeated,  or  until  it  shall  have 
passed. 

And  now  I  will  say  a  word  with  regard  to  the  amend 
ments  which  have  been  offered  to  this  bill.  The  gentle 
man  from  Virginia  (Mr.  Mason)  has  offered  an  amend 
ment.  That  amendment  is  thrust  upon  us  just  at  the  close 
of  the  session.  I,  for  one,  am  in  favor  of  the  principle 
of  the  amendment  offered  by  the  gentleman  from  Virginia. 
I  want  to  give  bounty  to  every  -man  who  served  in  the 
Revolutionary  War.  I  want  to  redeem  every  warrant  that 
Virginia  issued  during  the  Revolutionary  War.  That  is 
just  and  right.  But  I  will  tell  the  gentleman  from  Vir 
ginia  that  this  amendment  will  not  accomplish  the  end 
they  have  in  view.  The  great  difficulty  in  relation  to  these 
Virginia  warrants  is  that  most  of  them  are  spurious  and 
fraudulent.  The  great  difficulty  in  legislation,  and  the 
great  difficulty  with  the  department,  has  been  that  it  has 
been  impossible  to  provide  a  mode  of  scrutiny  by  which 
the  genuine  warrants  could  be  distinguished  from  the 
fraudulent  ones.  The  genuine  warrants  ought  to  be  paid. 
But  this  amendment  provides  for  the  payment  of  all  war 
rants,  without  any  qualification  or  reservation. 

I  do  not  see  how  the  department  could  operate  under 
such  an  amendment.  I  will  now  say  to  those  gentlemen 
that  they  ought  to  bring  in  their  bill  separately  and  dis 
tinctly,  because  it  is  a  separate  matter.  Let  them  intro 
duce  a  bill  and  let  it  be  referred  to  the  committee  on  pub 
lic  lands.  That  committee,  acting  in  concert  with  the 
department,  can  provide  a  bill  well  guarded,  with  proper 


144  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

restrictions  and  a  mode  for  discriminating  between  the 
warrants  that  are  fraudulent  and  those  that  are  genuine. 
Such  a  bill  can  pass  both  branches  of  Congress.  But  if 
you  add  that  amendment  to  this  bill  now,  you  will  defeat 
this  bill  and  the  amendment  with  it.  It  will  never  pass. 
And,  as  the  amendment  is  framed,  I  say  it  ought  not  to 
pass.  I  understand  from  the  department  that  most  of 
those  Virginia  warrants  that  are  now  circulating  around 
the  country  are  considered  to  be  spurious  and  fraudulent. 
Let  the  gentleman  from  Virginia  bring  in  a  separate  bill 
in  relation  to  this  subject. 

All  I  can  do  is  to  insist  on  action  in  regard  to  this 
bill.  It  has  to  go  back  to  the  House.  And  I  fear  that 
if  the  amendments  be  adopted — the  one  offered  by  the 
gentleman  from  Virginia,  the  other  by  the  gentleman  from 
Wisconsin — I  fear  the  bill  may  be  lost.  I  know  the  gentle 
man  from  Wisconsin  would  not  embarrass  this  bill.  West 
ern  men  do  not  want  to  embarrass  this  bill.  They  are 
willing  to  give  bounty  to  old  soldiers.  They  are  not  only 
willing  to  fight  themselves,  but  they  are  willing  to  pay 
men  for  fighting.  And  I  hope  the  gentleman  from  Wis 
consin  will  withdraw  his  amendment. 

Mr.  Mangum :  I  am  very  far  from  being  other  than 
a  friend  to  the  old  soldiers,  and  I  utterly  disavow  any  pur 
pose,  either  directly  or  indirectly,  to  defeat  this  measure. 
I  have  no  such  purpose. 

Mr.  Shields  :    I  know  that. 

Mr.  Mangum  then  moved  to  lay  the  bill  on  the  table, 
which  was  negatived.  A  long  debate  followed,  until  the 
Senate  adjourned. 

While  the  Senate  was  discussing  the  question  of  slave 
property  in  the  district  (September  19,  1850)  Mr.  Shields 
made  the  remark  that  he  "should  vote  against  taking  up 
any  bill — I  care  not  what  it  is — until  the  old  soldiers' 
bounty  land  bill  is  disposed  of  one  way  or  the  other." 

On  September  27,  1850,  Mr.  Shields  moved  that  the 
Senate  resume  the  consideration  of  the  bounty  land  bill, 
granting  bounty  lands  to  the  officers  and  soldiers  who 
have  been  engaged  in  the  military  service  of  the  United 


LIFE    OF    GEN.    SHIELDS.  145 

States.     He  hoped  the  bill  would  be  passed  without  fur 
ther  discussion  or  amendment. 

Second  Session  Thirty-first   Congress.     Volume   XXIII. 

On  December  12,  1850,  Mr.  Shields,  in  pursuance  of 
notice,  asked  and  obtained  leave  to  introduce  a  bill  grant 
ing  to  the  state  of  Missouri  the  right-of-way  and  a  portion 
of  the  public  lands  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  a  railroad 
from  Hannibal  to  St.  Joseph,  in  said  state,  which  was  read 
a  first  and  second  time  by  its  title,  and  referred  to  the  com 
mittee  on  public  lands. 

On  January  21,  1851,  Mr.  Shields,  in  pursuance  of 
notice,  asked  and  obtained  leave  to  introduce  a  bill  to 
grant  the  right-of-way  to  the  Mississippi  and  Atlantic  Rail 
road  Company  through  the  public  lands  in  the  state  of 
Illinois,  which  was  read  a  first  and  second  time  by  its  title 
and  referred  to  the  committee  on  public  lands. 

On  January  23,  1851,  Mr.  Shields  presented  resolu 
tions  of  the  Legislature  of  the  state  of  Illinois,  in  the  shape 
of  instructions  to  their  senators  and  request  to  their  rep 
resentatives,  in  favor  of  the  passage  of  a  law  granting 
a  donation  of  land  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  the  Mount 
Carmel  and  New  Albany  Railroad,  which  were  ordered  to 
lie  on  the  table  and  be  printed. 

Also,  resolutions  of  the  same  Legislature  in  favor  of 
granting  land  to  any  landless  head  of  a  family  that  will 
settle  and  cultivate  the  same,  which  were  ordered  to  lie 
on  the  table  and  be  printed. 

On  February  24,  1851,  Mr.  Shields  presented  a  me 
morial  from  citizens  of  Bond  County,  in  the  state  of  Illi 
nois,  asking  a  donation  of  land  for  the  establishment  of 
an  agricultural  school  and  experiment  farm,  which  was 
referred  to  the  committee  on  public  lands. 

Also  a  resolution  of  the  Legislature  of  the  state  of 
Illinois  in  favor  of  a  donation  of  land  for  the  improvement 
of  the  Kaskaskia  River,  which  was  read  and  ordered  to 
be  printed. 

On  the  bill  "to  found  a  military  asylum  for  the  relief 
and  support  of  invalid  and  disabled  soldiers  of  the  United 


146  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

States,"  Mr.  Shields  said :  I  hold  that  this  measure  is  not 
only  humane,  but  it  is  economical.  It  is  humane  because 
it  embraces  three  classes  of  objects — the  wounded,  the 
disabled  and  the  superannuated — those  who  have  become 
such  in  the  army  of  the  United  States.  I  presume  the 
senator  from  Kentucky  would  not  object  to  give  these 
men  some  kind  of  support,  to  give  some  kind  of  support 
to  the  wounded,  the  disabled,  the  superannuated,  who 
have  become  such  in  the  service  of  the  United  States. 
Now,  the  object  of  this  bill  is  to  provide  a  mode  by  which 
these  classes  of  persons  can  be  supported  and  provided 
for  without  placing  them  upon  the  pension  list.  Our  pen 
sion  list  is  becoming  enormous.  The  honorable  senator 
knows  that.  If  such  an  asylum  and  such  a  provision  as 
this  had  been  in  operation  years  ago  our  pension  list  would 
not  now  be  one-tenth  the  amount  which  it  is  at  this  mo 
ment.  This  measure  is  to  supersede  the  necessity  of  these 
large  pensions  and  to  give  those  who  are  entitled  to  a 
pension  a  home  where  they  can  live  cheaply,  live  simply 
and  be  provided  for  in  all  respects.  And  how  is  this  to 
be  done?  Not  by  the  government  of  the  United  States, 
for  there  is  no  demand  of  that  kind,  but  it  is  to  be  a  self- 
sustaining  project,  sustained  out  of  the  pay  of  the  soldiers 
themselves  w7ho  are  benefited  by  it.  If  the  project  fails 
we  can  but  abandon  it,  without  any  loss  to  the  United 
States.  But  I  trust  it  will  not  fail.  I  trust  that  this  pro 
vision  will  be  allowed  to  be  made  for  these  men,  and  that 
we  will  thereby  get  rid  of  a  large  portion  of  these  immense 
pensions  that  are  now  swelling  our  pension  list  to  such 
an  enormous  extent. 

On  March  3,  1851,  while  an  amendment  to  the  navy 
appropriation  bill  was  under  discussion,  Mr.  Shields  re 
marked:  "I  go  for  the  amendment,  and  against  'the 
wooden  walls  of  England.'  ' 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  147 


CHAPTER     XL 


Shields'  Welcome  to  Kossuth — Resolution  and  Speech  Against  British 
Interference  in  Central  America — Sound  Monroe  Doctrine — 
Bounty  Lands  Not  a  Gratuity  But  a  Reward  for  Honorable 
Services. 


On  the  motion  of  Mr.  Foote  the  Senate  proceeded  to 
the  consideration  of  a  "joint  resolution  for  the  relief  of 
Louis  Kossuth  and  his  associates,  exiles  from  Hungary." 

Mr.  Shields  moved  to  strike  out  the  preamble,  which 
is  in  these  words:  "Whereas,  Louis  Kossuth  and  his  asso 
ciates,  whom  the  fortune  of  war  has  exiled  from  their 
country,  have  already  suffered  by  a  long  and  cruel  cap 
tivity,  and  it  has  been  understood  that  the  sovereign  in 
whose  domains  they  are  now  located  considers  that  his 
neutral  obligations  no  longer  require  him  to  retain  them 
in  custody,  provided  they  will  consent  to  come  to  the 
United  States  of  America;  and  whereas  the  American 
people  have,  in  various  modes,  manifested  a  deep  and 
pervading  sympathy  for  these  expatriated  champions  of 
civil  and  religious  liberty,  and  have  evinced  a  desire  to 
secure  them  a  safe  and  permanent  asylum  within  the  lim 
its  of  this  republic;  be  it  therefore —  '  and  insert  a  sub 
stitute,  which  being  agreed  to,  the  preamble  and  reso 
lution  were  as  follows : 

Whereas,  The  people  of  the  United  States  sincerely 
sympathize  with  the  Hungarian  exiles,  Kossuth  and  his 
associates,  and  fully  appreciate  the  magnanimous  conduct 
of  the  Turkish  government  in  receiving  and  treating  these 
noble  exiles  with  kindness  and  hospitality;  and  whereas 
it  is  the  wish  of  these  exiles  to  emigrate  to  the  United 
States,  and  the  will  of  the  Sultan  to  permit  them  to  leave 
his  dominions;  therefore, 

Resolved,    By  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representa- 


148  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

lives  of  the  United  States  of  America,  in  Congress  assem 
bled,  that  the  President  of  the  United  States  be,  and  he 
hereby  is,  requested  to  authorize  the  employment  of  some 
one  of  the  public  vessels  which  may  be  now  cruising  in 
the  Mediterranean,  to  receive  and  convey  to  the  United 
States  the  said  Louis  Kossuth  and  his  associates  in  cap 
tivity. 

The  resolution  was  reported  to  the  Senate,  the  amend 
ment  was  concurred  in,  the  resolution  was  ordered  to  be 
engrossed  for  a  third  reading,  and  was  subsequently  read 
a  third  time  and  passed. 

BRITISH    INTERFERENCE    IN    CENTRAL    AMERICA. 

Mr.  Shields :  Mr.  President,  I  desire  to  submit  the 
following  resolution : 

Resolved,  That  the  President  of  the  United  States 
be  requested  to  lay  before  the  Senate,  if  not  incompatible 
with  the  public  interest,  all  the  information  in  his  pos 
session  touching  the  difficulties  between  the  British  au 
thorities  and  San  Salvador;  the  blockade  of  the  coast 
of  that  republic  by  the  British  fleet ;  the  invasion  of  Gua 
temala  by  the  forces  of  San  Salvador  and  Honduras,  and 
such  other  matters  connected  therewith  as  materially  af 
fect  the  interests  of  the  United  States,  or  threaten  the  in 
dependence  of  Central  America. 

Mr.  Shields:  Mr.  President,  I  take  the  liberty  of 
offering  this  resolution,  and  hope,  as  it  is  merely  one  of 
inquiry,  that  it  will  be  permitted  to  pass  by  unanimous 
consent.  The  information  upon  which  I  base  it  I  gather 
from  the  public  papers,  and  I  seek  by  this  resolution  to 
procure  more  reliable  information.  That  country,  as  is 
well  known  to  Senators,  has  been  for  a  long  time  in  a 
most  distracted  condition.  Dissensions  of  the  most  bit 
ter  and  hostile  character  have  prevailed  throughout  the 
states  of  Central  America,  Now,  sir,  these  dissensions  have 
had  their  usual  consequence. 

The  President :  The  Senator's  resolution  must  be 
received  before  he  can  discuss  it. 

Mr.  Shields:  I  wish  to  state  the  reasons  why  I  ask 
the  consent  of  the  Senate  to  consider  this  resolution  now. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  149 

These  dissensions  placed  the  country  in  a  most  inex 
plicable  condition.  I  stated  that  I  have  no  information 
but  that  contained  in  the  public  papers.  I  have  had  no 
conversation,  no  communication  with  the  departments, 
or  any  member  of  the  departments ;  but  I  seek  reliable  in 
formation  on  this  subject.  I  hold  in  my  hand  a  paper— 
and  it  is  one  which  I  esteem  very  highly — and  if  the 
accounts,  in  that  paper  be  correct,  or  even  substantially 
correct,  it  is  time  some  action  should  be  had  on  the 
matter.  It  seems  from  this  paper  that  on  the  i6th  day 
of  last  October,  Mr.  Chatfield,  who  is  the  British  agent 
in  Central  America,  notified  San  Salvador,  or  the  govern 
ment  of  San  Salvador,  that  in  ten  days,  unless  they  com 
plied  with  his  demand,  the  whole  coast  would  be  placed 
under  blockade  by  the  British  fleet.  In  ten  days !  Some 
thing  very  prompt,  decidedly.  Mr.  Chatfield  must  be  a 
faithful  disciple  of  his  master.  He  only  gave  ten  days 
to  meet  his  requisitions,  his  demands;  then,  if  they  did 
not  comply  with  these  demands,  he  would  blockade  the 
coast  by  the  British  fleet. 

I  find  from  this  paper,  again,  that  the  President  of 
that  little  republic  remonstrated  against  this  outrageous 
conduct,  and  appealed  to  the  mediation  of  the  French 
consul.  This  mediation,  so  far  as  I  can  perceive,  was 
wholly  disregarded  by  the  British  agents,  and  servants, 
and  authorities  in  Central  America.  The  next  step  is  the 
blockade  of  the  coast — of  the  whole  coast.  The  com 
mander  of  the  British  frigate  Gorgon,  on  this  occasion, 
when  notifying  the  commandant  of  Acatputla  of  this  block 
ade,  uses  terms  that  are  exceedingly  characteristic.  Sir, 
he  tells  that  commandant  that  the  whole  coast  is  block 
aded ;  that  the  squadron  consists  of  eleven  vessels;  that 
that  force  is  to  recapture  Tigre  Island,  and  if  there  is 
any  resistance,  and  if  provisions  and  water  are  not  sup- 
lied,  the  town  is  to  be  bombarded  and  the  city  and  inhab 
itants  all  destroyed.  This  is  a  feeble  country — the  ally 
of  Great  Britain — and  this  is  the  way  in  which  it  is  treated. 

I  will  not  enter  further  into  details.  The  country  has 
resented  this  aggression.  The  forces  of  San  Salvador  and 


150  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

the  forces  of  Honduras  have  now  entered  Guatemala. 
They  have  carried  the  war  there — into  the  center  of  Brit 
ish  power — to  the  headquarters  of  this  British  official  dic 
tator,  Mr.  Chatfield,  and  they  have  determined  there  to 
reverse  that  dictation  or  yield  their  independence  to  Great 
Britain.  Now,  we  have  entered  into  a  treaty  with  Great 
Britain  very  recently.  I  was  strongly  in  favor  of  that 
treaty.  Its  object  I  understood— 

The  President :  The  chair  is  again  under  the  neces 
sity  of  apprising  the  Senator  that  discussion  is  not  in  order 
until  the  resolution  has  been  received. 

Mr.  Shields:  Well,  sir,  I  hope  I  shall  have  the 
unanimous  consent  of  the  Senate. 

Mr.  Walker:  I  hope  the  Senator  from  Illinois  will 
be  heard.  He  is  speaking  upon  a  subject  upon  which 
I  have  long  wished  to  hear  something.  If,  however,  he 
cannot  be  permitted  to  make  his  explanation  at  this  time, 
I  hope  the  rule  which  prevents  his  explanation  will  be 
enforced  on  all  future  occasions  in  relation  to  all  other 
Senators. 

Several  Senators:     Hear  him. 

Mr.  Soule :  I  hope  the  Senator  will  be  permitted  to 
proceed. 

The  President:  If  there  be  no  objection  to  the  con 
sideration  of  the  resolution  it  will  now  be  taken  up. 

Several   Senators :     Agreed  !   Agreed ! 

Mr.  Phelps:     Let  it  lie  over. 

Mr.  Dickinson :  I  hope  the  Senator  will  be  allowed 
to  proceed. 

Mr.  Foote :  I  hope  the  Senator  from  Illinois  will  be 
allowed  to  make  his  explanation. 

Mr.  Hale :  I  hope  he  will,  for  the  Senator  from  Mis 
sissippi  would  not  ask  if  it  was  not  highly  proper.  He 
objected  to  my  proceeding  yesterday,  and  he  would 
not  to-day  approve  such  a  course  if  it  were  not  right. 
(Laughter.) 

The  President :  The  chair  has  certainly  no  disposi 
tion  to  interfere  with  the  honorable  Senator,  but  he  is 
here  to  enforce  the  rules,  which  are  departed  from  in  many 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  151 

instances.  He  yesterday  gave  notice  that  he  would  be 
under  the  necessity  in  future  of  confining  gentlemen 
within  the  strict  limit  allowed  by  the  rules;  therefore, 
until  the  resolution  is  under  consideration,  it  is  not  a 
subject  for  discussion.  If,  however,  it  be  the  pleasure 
of  the  Senate,  the  Senator  can  proceed.  The  chair  has 
certainly  not  the  slightest  objection. 

Mr.  Douglas:  I  hear  no  objection.  I  think  the 
unanimous  consent  of  the  Senate  is  given. 

Mr.  Shields :  I  have  but  a  very  few  remaks  to  make, 
and  perhaps  it  will  save  time  if  I  make  them  now.  I  have 
stated  that,  as  I  understood  it,  the  object  of  our  recent 
treaty,  with  England  was  to  prevent  or  avoid  those  diffi 
culties  which  are  now  occurring  in  Central  America.  I 
was  in  favor  of  that  treaty  at  that  time,  because  I  believed 
it  would  rid  us  of  difficulties  which  I  knew  existed  in  that 
part  of  the  continent  between  the  states  of  Central  Amer 
ica  and  British  officials,  perhaps  not  countenanced  by  the 
British  government,  but  certainly  transacted  in  that  coun 
try.  That  treaty  was  somewhat  at  variance  with  the 
policy  of  this  country.  It  was  a  departure  from  our  usual 
and  recognized  policy.  We  made  a  joint  treaty  with  a 
great  European  power,  a  thing  that  our  policy  does  not 
admit  of,  and  a  treaty  that  entangled  us  with  that  power 
in  regard  to  the  affairs  of  this  continent.  I  was  in  favor 
of  it  then,  but  now  I  confess  that  the  working  of  the  treaty, 
as  it  is  exhibited  in  Central  America,  satisfies  me  that  it 
was  a  very  dangerous  experiment.  I  have  the  most  im 
plicit  confidence  in  the  administration,  so  far  as 
this  matter  is  concerned,  also  in  the  distinguished 
head  of  the  State  Department;  and  I  have  confidence 
in  the  enliglitened  and  intelligent  representative  of  Great 
Britain  at  Washington.  But  if  the  reports  in  these  papers 
be  correct ;  if  the  difficulties  be  as  great  as  they  are  rep 
resented  here ;  that  two  of  these  states,  driven  as  it  were 
by  desperation,  have  waged  war  against  the  British  power 
in  Guatemala;  that  their  forces  have  invaded  Guatemala; 
that  the  Britsh  fleet  have  blockaded  the  coast,  there  is 
war.  There  is  war  throughout  Central  America  if  these 


]52  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

reports  be  correct.  What  I  want  to  know  is,  whether 
these  reports  are  correct.  I  want  some  reliable  informa 
tion  from  the  department  whether  we  have  a  fleet  there  to 
watch  the  American  interests,  or  whether  there  is  nothing 
there  but  a  British  fleet ;  whether  these  countries  are  now 
at  war  with  Great  Britain.  If  they  are  at  war,  we  know 
what  the  result  of  that  war  must  be — those  countries,  from 
being  nominally,  will  become  actually,  dependent  on  Great 
Britain.  And  perhaps  at  this  moment  Britain  is  in  actual 
possession  of  a  large  portion  of  that  country. 

I  ask  honorable  Senators  if  they  are  ready,  or  if  this 
country  is  ready,  to  give  any  portion  of  that  part  of  this 
continent — Central  America —  to  the  possession  of  any 
great  European  power?  Sir,  it  is  a  bridge  between  the 
possessions  of  this  country  on  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific. 
How  does  the  case  stand?  Costa  Rica,  Nicaragua,  Tigre 
Island,  and  now  Honduras  and  San  Salvador  and  Guate 
mala  falling  under  British  domination.  As  I  remarked  be 
fore,  I  have  the  utmost  confidence  in  the  administration 
and  in  the  able  representative  of  the  British  power  here, 
but  I  hold  that  at  this  time  the  British  agent,  the  British 
official  dictator  in  Central  America,  has  so  entangled  the 
matter  that  I  doubt  very  much  whether  diplomacy  can 
ever  disentangle  it.  That  is  my  fear,  and  that  is  the  reason 
I  seek  this  information. 

Mr.  Phelps  withdrew  his  objection  to  the  considera 
tion  of  the  resolution,  and  it  was  before  the  Senate  for 
consideration. 

Mr.  Davis,  of  Massachusetts :  I  wish  merely  to  say  that 
if  I  have  a  right  recollection  of  the  treaty  which  was  rati 
fied  during  the  last  session  of  Congress,  Great  Britain 
expressly  stated  that  she  would  not  colonize  any  portion 
of  Central  America.  She  entered  into  a  distinct  agree 
ment  with  this  Government  that  she  would  not  colonize 
any  portion  of  that  country.  I  suppose,  therefore,  if  any 
controversy  has  arisen  between  her  and  Guatemala,  or  any 
of  those  small  states,  the  motive  cannot  be  to  maintain 
anything  like  permanent  control  of  that  portion  of  the 
continent.  She  disclaims,  I  believe,  even  the  right  of 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  153 

being  a  protector  of  any  portion  of  that  country.  I  should 
be  very  glad  to  obtain  the  information  for  which  the  reso 
lution  calls.  I  make  these  few  remarks  simply  because  I 
think  there  has  been  a  public  discussion  going  on  in  the 
public  newspapers  which  rather  tends  to  mislead  the  pub 
lic  mind  with  regard  to  this  subject.  I  have  no  idea  that 
Great  Britain  is  working  out  measures  for  the  final  colon 
ization  of  these  countries,  and  I  think  the  result  will  verify 
this  prediction. 

Mr.  Day :  I  wish  merely  to  say  that  I  concur  entirely 
in  the  call  which  is  contained  in  the  resolution.  At  the 
same  time  I  would  remark  that  there  is  a  great  disposition, 
perhaps  too  great  a  disposition,  in  a  portion  of  the  public 
mind  of  the  country,  toward  irritation  upon  this  subject. 
I  think  that  we  ought,  upon  this,  as  upon  all  other  ques 
tions  relating  to  our  foreign  affairs,  to  proceed  with  the 
greatest  deliberation.  Let  us  first  get  the  information. 
That  would  seem  to  be  the  proper  basis.  The  object  of 
this  resolution  is  to  obtain  the  information.  I  therefore 
concur  in  it.  Let  us  see  what  the  information  is  before 
we  venture  to  pronounce  a  judgment  animadvertently  on 
the  conduct  of  a  foreign  power,  or  say  anything  to 
estrange  the  present  amicable  relations  existing  between 
the  two  powers.  , 

I  concur  entirely  with  the  honorable  senator  from 
Illinois  [Mr.  Shields]  in  saying  that  I  am  sure  that  all 
confidence  is  due  to  the  present  administration,  and  I  add 
with  him,  confidence  is  due  to  the  disposition  of  the  pres 
ent  enlightened  representative  of  Great  Britain  at  this 
Government,  to  maintain,  to  execute,  and  carry  out  to  the 
fullest  extent  all  treaty  stipulations  which  exist  between 
the  two  countries.  I  have  only  said  this  by  way  of  express 
ing  the  hope  that  we  will  refrain  from  discussing  and  ani 
madverting  upon  these  public  matters  until  we  get  the 
truth,  the  whole  truth,  and  nothing  but  the  truth. 

Mr.  Cass:  I  rise  merely  to  render  my  thanks  to  the 
honorable  Senator  from  Illinois  for  bringing  this  matter 
before  the  Senate  and  for  the  remarks  which  he  has  made. 
Certain  it  is,  there  are  events  going  on  in  that  portion  of 


154  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

the  continent  deeply  interesting  to  the  Government  and 
people  of  this. country — events  and  facts  which  ought  to  be 
investigated. 

As  to  treaties  and  arrangements,  we  all  know  how 
easily  they  are  swept  away  when  they  stand  in  the  path  of 
human  ambition.  I  am  very  desirous  myself  that  the  facts 
should  be  investigated,  and  I  hope,  therefore,  that  the 
resolution  will  be  passed. 

Mn  Davis,  of  Massachusetts :  I  wish  the  secretary  to 
read  the  first  article  of  the  treaty. 

The  secretary  accordingly  read  the  following  article 
from  the  recently  made  treaty,  to  which  the  reference  was 
made  in  the  course  of  the  discussion. 

"The  governments  of  the  United  States  and  Great 
Britain  hereby  declare  that  neither  the  one  nor  the  other 
will  ever  obtain  or  maintain  for  itself  any  exclusive  control 
over  the  said  ship  canal,  agreeing  that  neither  will  ever 
erect  nor  maintain  any  fortifications  commanding  the  same 
or  in  the  vicinity  thereof,  or  occupy,  or  fortify,  or  colon 
ize,  or  assume,  or  exercise  any  dominion  over  Nicaragua, 
Costa  Rica,  the  Mosquito  coast,  or  any  part  of  Central 
America ;  nor  will  either  make  use  of  any  protection  which 
either  affords  or  may  afford,  or  any  alliance  which  either 
has  or  may  have  to  or  with  any  state  or  people,  for  the 
purpose  of  erecting  or  maintaining  any  such  fortifications, 
or  of  occupying,  fortifying  or  colonizing  Nicaragua,  Costa 
Rica,  the  Mosquito  coast,  or  any  part  of  Central  America, 
or  of  assuming*  or  exercising  dominion  over  the  same ;  nor 
will  the  United  States  or  Great  Britain  take  advantage  of 
any  intimacy,  or  use  any  alliance,  connection  or  influence 
that  either  may  possess  with  any  state  or  government 
through  whose  territory  the  said  canal  may  pass,  for  the 
purpose  of  acquiring  or  holding,  directly  or  indirectly,  for 
the  citizens  or  subjects  of  the  one,  any  rights  or  advan 
tages  in  regard  to  commerce  or  navigation  through  the 
said  canal,  which  shall  not  be  afforded  on  the  same  terms 
to'the  citizens  or  subjects  of  the  other." 

Mr.  Davis,  of  Massachusetts:  I  do  not  intend  to 
make  any  comments  upon  that  article,  but  I  merely  wish 


LIFE    OF    GEN.    SHIELDS.  155 

it  to  go  out  to  the  country  with  the  other  proceedings  of 
the  morning. 

Mr.  Shields :  I  may  be  permitted  to  say,  in  self-justi 
fication,  that  I  had  before  me  in  the  papers  of  the  country 
the  proclamation  of  the  President,  the  notification  of  the 
British  authorities,  the  declarations  of  the  very  active  and 
very  obnoxious  British  agent,  Mr.  Chatfield,  and  I  have 
also  direct  information  from  the  country.  I  have  made 
110  remarks,  I  hope,  calculated  to  create  any  improper 
excitement. 

Mr.  Douglas :  I  have  but  a  remark  to  make  on  this 
subject.  I  am  glad  that  this  resolution  has  been  brought 
forward,  and  that  the  section  of  the  treaty  has  been  read. 
I  voted  against  that  treaty,  for  the  reason  that  I  was  unwill 
ing  to  enter  into  any  stipulation  with  any  European  power 
that  we  would  not  do  on  this  continent  whatever  we 
might  think  it  our  duty  whenever  a  case  should  arise.  I 
voted  against  it,  therefore,  because  of  the  clause  which 
has  been  read,  but  as  it  has  been  entered  into,  I  desire  to 
see  it  enforced.  I  am  not  yet  aware  that  that  clause  of  the 
treaty  has  been  carried  into  effect.  I  have  yet  to  learn 
that  the  British  government  have  withdrawn  their  protec 
torate  from  the  Mosquito-  coast.  I  have  yet  to  learn  that 
they  have  abandoned  the  possession  which  they  held  under 
the  Mosquito  king.  I  hope  the  inquiry  will  go  far  enough 
to  learn  whether  or  no  the  treaty  has  been  executed  in 
that  respect.  I  deem  that,  as  well  as  the  subjects  referred 
to  by  my  colleague,  a  proper  matter  of  inquiry,  and  trust 
we  shall  have  full  information  on  the  whole  subject. 

The  resolution  was  then  adopted. 

During  Shields'  term  as  Senator  from  Illinois  some  of  the  most 
important  questions  were  discussed  that  have  agitated  the  nation; 
that  era  might  well  be  called  a  critical  period  in  the  history  of  the 
country.  The  paramount  measures  considered  and  legislated  upon 
were : 

The  Admission  of  California.  The  Compromise  Measures  of  1850. 
The  Building  of  Continental  Railroads.  The  Granting  of  Public  Lands 
to  Railroads,  Canals  and  for  Educational  Purposes.  The  Chartering  of 
the  Illinois  Central  Railroad,  which  Opened  up  the  Country  from  the 
Great  Lakes  to  the  Gulf.  The  Homestead  Act,  as  Well  as  Measures  to 
More  Efficiently  Organize  the  Army. 


156  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

These  were  subjects  that  called  for  the  best  thought  and  most 
careful  consideration  by  the  first  men  of  the  land. 

It  is  no  flattery  to  state,  that  as  an  active  and  intelligent  factor  in 
these  events  and  the  legislation  pertaining  thereto,  that  Senator  Shields 
proved  his  greatness  among  the  greatest  of  men. 

His  colleagues  in  the  Senate  were  Webster,  Calhoun,  Clay,  Cass, 
Seward,  Benton,  Douglas,  Jefferson  Davis  and  others  who  were  the 
grandest  figures  in  the  public  eye.  With  Sumner,  Chase,  Fessenden, 
Everett  and  John  C.  Breckenridge,  commanding  figures  in  our  history. 
That  was  the  beginning  of  the  end  of  the  slavery  struggle;  as  a  public 
question,  it  entered  into  nearly  every  important  debate  in  the  Senate. 

Senator  Shields  was  opposed  to  the  extension  of  slavery,  although 
his  party  was  pro-slavery,  and  as  a  rule  he  was  found  on  the  side  of 
humanity  and  freedom. 

On  January  7,  1850,  Senator  Clemens  of  Alabama  introduced  a 
series  of  resolutions  of  inquiry  relative  to  the  action  of  President 
Taylor  respecting  the  admission  of  California  into  the  Union.  These 
resolutions  were  tabled  for  the  time  by  a  tie  vote.  Senator  Shields 
voted  with  Senator  'Douglas  against  hasty  action,  reflecting  on  the 
Wr^g  administration  of  General  Taylor. 

This  was  the  beginning  of  the  struggle  on  the  admission  of  Cali 
fornia,  and  pointed  to  other  serious  questions. 

On  January  I7th  General  Shields  was  charged  by  Senator  Clemens 
with  wanting  to  shield  the  President  from  an  investigation,  because 
the  slavery  question  was  involved  in  it.  Mr.  Shields  replied,  "I  disa 
vow  for  myself  any  such  imputation  that  I  give  a  vote  for  any  such 
purpose." 

The  record  of  the  Senate  bore  testimony  to  Shields'  activity  in  pre 
senting  petitions  against  the  extension  of  slavery.  One  of  the 
earliest  attempts  to  secure  for  actual  settlers  grants  of  government  land 
in  limited  quantities,  came  from  Illinois  and  was  presented  and  urged 
by  Senator  Shields. 

His  great  effort  in  opposition  to  the  extension  of  slavery  into- 
California,  is  characterized  by  an  uncompromising  bravery  of  spirit. 

Every  line  that  the  old  soldier  uttered,  in  that  forum  of  intellectual 
giants,  carries  the  invincible  strength  that  marks  a  man  of  con 
viction. 

During  a  debate  on  the  bill  for  a  grant  of  lands  to  the  Illinois 
Central  and  its  extension  south  of  Mobile,  Senator  Shields  advocated 
the  measure  as  one  not  only  of  great  commercial  importance  but  alsa 
as  having  political  significance,  saying:  "As  it  (the  Illinois  Central) 
is  to  connect  North  and  South  so  thoroughly,  it  may  serve  to  get 
rid  of  the  Wilmot  proviso,  and  tie  us  together  so  effectually  that  the 
idea,  even  of  separation,  will  be  impossible." 

The  characteristic  uprightness  of  his  mind  and  the  purity  of  his 
motives,  when  dealing  with  public  affairs,  are  shown  in  remarks  made 
in  debate  like  the  following:  "I  want  to  accomplish  nothing  indirectly. 
If  we  cannot  carry  the  measure  directly,  let  it  fail."  His  speech  in  the 
debate  relating  to  the  boundary  of  Texas  is  a  good  specimen  of  his 
intellectual  honesty.  He  said:  "Mr.  President,  I  merely  rise  to  say,. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  157 

that  I.  shall  vote  for  the  proposition  of  the  Senator  from  Maryland, 
(Mr.  Pearce).  I  yesterday  voted  against  the  amendment  of  the  gen 
tleman  from  Georgia,  (Mr.  Dawson),  but  afterward  for  the  amend 
ment  of  the  Senator  from  Maine  (Mr.  Bradbury),  as  amended  by  the 
Senator  from  Georgia.  I  will  say  further  that  that  was  a  vote  which 
I  am  not  prepared  to  defend  here  or  elsewhere.  I  wish  to  remind  my 
honorable  friend  from  Texas,  that  I  was  willing  and  anxious  to  come 
to  almost  any  accommodation  to  satisfy  Texas.  I  was  anxious  to  com 
pound  almost  anything  to  bring  California  into  the  Union,  but  since 
I  have  reflected  on  the  effect  of  the  vote  I  gave  yesterday,  and  on  the 
effects  of  that  amendment,  I  am  really  gratified  that  my  friend  from 
Maryland  has  presented  a  mode  by  which  I  can  redeem  myself." 

This  was  a  masterly  retreat,  consistent  with  honor,  it  was  manly, 
there  was  nothing  cowardly  about  it. 

The  vote  on  the  admission  of  California  was  32  to  18,  Senator 
Shields  voted  with  the  majority. 

During  the  month  of  September,  1850,  occurred  the  contest  over 
the  abolition  of  slavery  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  Senator  Shields 
was  uniformly  on  'the  side  of  its  abolition  and  voted  for  the  measure 
abolishing  it  which  passed  September  i6th. 

In  the  debate  upon  granting  bounty  land  to  officers  and  soldiers, 
Senator  Shields,  in  advocating  the  measure,  took  exceptions  to  remarks 
made  by  Mr.  Mason  of  Virginia  on  the  measure.  Senator  Shields  said 
"I  take  exception  to  one  expression,  which  has  fallen  from  the  gentle 
man  from  Virginia.  He  says  that  'this  is  a  pure  gratuity/  and,  'that  it 
is  giving  the  lands  as  a  mere  gratuity.'  I  know  there  is  not  much 
difference  in  expression ;  but  I  say,  that  it  is  not  a  gratuity,  but  as  a 
reward  for  services,  and  for  honorable  ssrvices — for  glorious  services — 
for  services  such  as  soldiers  never  perhaps  rendered  a  country  before. 
And  I  say  further,  that  when  your  politicians  and  statesmen  treat  this 
kind  of  service  with  contempt,  you  may  have  armies,  but  you  will 
never  have  such  soldiers  as  carried  your  flag  to  Mexico;  you  will 
never  have  such  soldiers  as  humbled  England. 

January  16,  1851. 

Senator  Shields  submitted  a  resolution  relative  to  Central  America 
and  British  encroachments  on  the  American  continent.  He  closed 
his  explanatory  remarks  with  a  vigorous  apeal: 

"I  ask  honorable  Senators  if  they  are  ready,  or  if  this  country  is 
ready,  to  give  any  portion  of  that  part  of  this  continent— Central 
America — to  the  possession  of  any  great  European  power?  Sir,  it  is  a 
bridge  between  the  possessions  of  this  country  on  the  Atlantic  and 
Pacific."  The  resolution  was  adopted. 

February  24111  Senator  Shields  presented  a  memorial  from  the  citi 
zens  of  Bond  County,  111.,  asking  a  donation  of  lands  for  the  founding 
and  establishment  of  an  agricultural  school  and  an  experiment  farm. 
This  is  one  of  the  earliest  movements  in  the  very  important  educational 
field. 

February  26,  1851,  the  Senate  having  under  consideration  a  "joint 
resolution  for  the  relief  of  Louis  Kossuth  and  his  associates,  exiles  from 
Hungary,"  General  Shields  moved  to  substitute  as  follows : 


158  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

"Resolved,  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  in  Congress 
assembled,  that  the  President  of  the  United  States  be  and  he  hereby 
is  Requested  to  authorize  the  employment  of  someone  of  the  public 
vessels  which  may  be  now  cruising  in  the  Mediterranean  to  receive 
and  convey  to  the  United  States  the  said  Louis  Kossuth  and  his  asso 
ciates  in  captivity."  The  amendment  was  concurred  in,  the  resolution 
ordered  engrossed  for  a  third  reading,  subsequently  read  a  third  time 
and  passed.  And  thus  the  Irish  hero  identified  himself  with  the 
rising  and  invincible  spirit  of  personal  liberty  as  immortalized  in  the 
pers6n  of  the  great  Kossuth. 

The  Thirty-second  Congress  convened  December  i,  1851.  Senator 
Shields  was  made  Chairman  of  Committee  on  Military  Affairs,  also 
Chairman  of  Committee  on  District  of  Columbia  and  member  of 
Committee  on  Public  Lands. 

Senator  Shields  asked  leave  to  introduce  the  following: 

"Resolved,  That  a  committee  of  three  be  appointed  by  the  chair  to 
wait  on  Louis  Kossuth,  Governor  of  Hungary,  and  introduce  him  to 
the  Senate."  By  way  of  introduction  he  said,  in  part :  "The  world 
is  now  looking  to  the  action  of  this  body  and  this  •  Congress.  The 
prayers  of  Hungary  follow  this  man.  The  hopes  of  the  liberal  party 
in  Europe  follow  him.  In  my  opinion  he  is  the  great  man  of  the  day. 
I  feel  that  if  there  is  one  man  who  will  carry  out  what  I  hope  will  be 
carried  out,  the  concentration  of  the  moral  force  of  this  age  against 
despotism,  that  man  is  Louis  Kossuth."  December  i6th  this  resolution 
was  passed  with  a  slight  amendment.  The  committee-  on  reception  of 
Kossuth  and  his  presentation  to  the  Senate  was  James  Shields,  Wm.  H. 
Seward,  Lewis  Cass.  This  interesting  event  occurred  on  January  5, 
1852. 

At  one  o'clock  Governor  Kossuth,  supported  by  the  committee, 
entered  and  advanced  within  the  bar,  the  Senate  rising  to  receive  them. 
Senator  Shields,  chairman,  addressed  the  President  of  the  Senate  as 
follows : 

"Mr.  President,  we  have  the  honor  to  introduce  Louis  Kossuth  to 
the  Senate  of  the  United  States." 

February  9,  1852,  the  special  order  of  the  Senate  was  a  resolution 
submitted  by  Mr.  Foote  of  Mississippi,  being  a  "joint  resolution,  ex 
pressive  of  the  sympathy  of  Congress  for  the  exiled  Irish  patriots, 
William  Smith  O'Brien,  Thomas  Francis  Meagher  and  their  associates." 

January  29th,  Senator  Shields  submitted  an  amendment  which  was 
now  the  question  pending.  In  the  course  of  his  plea  he  says :  "As 
one  of  the  friends  of  these  exiles  I  take  occasion  to  state  to  the 
Senate,  and  I  think  I  interpret  the  wishes  of  all  their  friends,  when  I 
make  the  statement,  that  if  they  have  the  good  fortune  to  ever  reach 
our  shores,  we  have  no  wish  to  see  them  welcomed  with  any  public 
demonstration  or  display,  like  that  which  has  just  been  given  to  the 
illustrious  Kossuth.  *  *  *  We  wish  to  see  them  receive  no  other 
reception  than  that  which  the  generous  American  heart  always  renders 
to  the  noble  unfortunate. 

*  *  *  At  this  age  of  the  world,  I  think  it  is  generally  admitted, 
that  to  punish  a  man  for  a  political  offense,  without  a  very  strong 
political  necessity,  is  not  an  act  of  justice  or  self-defense,  but  on  the 
contrary,  is  an  act  of  cruel,  useless  and  impolitic  venegeance." 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  159 

General   Shields,  only  a  few  years  afterward,  saw  his  sentiments  , 
nobly  illustrated,  as  never  before   in  the  history  of  the  world,  in  the 
magnanimity   of  his   adopted  country  toward  the  leaders   of  the    Re 
bellion  against  which   he  had   gallantly  fought. 

Again,  he  says :  "If  we  weigh  the  conduct  of  these  Irish  patriots, 
not  in  legal,  but  in  moral  scales,  we  will  find  much  to  justify  their  at 
tempt.  They  loved  their  native  country.  There  is  no  moral  guilt  in 
this.  On  the  contrary,  the  love  of  country  is  one  of  the  noblest  senti 
ments  of  our  nature.  When  this  sentiment  fades  from  the  soul,  the  soul 
has  lost  its  original  brightness.  *  *  *  An  Irish  patriot  hears  him 
self  pronounced  guilty  in  what  is  called  the  sanctuary  of  justice,  while 
he  feels  in  the  sanctuary  of  his  heart,  that  he  stands  guiltless  before  his 
God,  and  his  country.  *  *  *  You  must  destroy  the  heart  before 
you  can  destroy  this  sentiment.  *  *  *  Ireland  is  their  native  coun 
try;  they  saw  her  lying  around  them  in  ruins.  They  made  a  desperate 
effort  to  collect  the  broken  fragments  and  bind  them  together  into  some 
thing  like  nationality.  The  effort  failed;  it  was  bound  to  fail.  The 
spirit  of  Irish  nationality  is  dead." 

May  T2,  1852,  Senator  Shields,  from  the  Committee  on  Military 
Affairs,  submitted  a  report  accompanied  by  a  bill  making  important 
changes  in  the  organization  of  the  army. 

The  second  session  of  the  Thirty-second  Congress  began  December 
6,  1852. 

On  December  2ist,  Senator  Shields  urged  the  passage  of  the  "joint 
resolution  conferring  the  title  of  lieutenant-general  by  brevet  for  emi 
nent  services,''  indicating  that  General  Scott  most  deserved  the  honor. 

Thirty-third  Congress,  December  5,  1853.  Gen.  Shields  was  again 
made  Chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Military  Affairs  and  member  of 
the  Committee  on  Militia. 

March  22,  1854,  Senator  Shields'  bill  to  increase  the  efficiency  of 
the  army,  after  much  discussion  and  slight  amendment,  was  passed, 
greatly  to  the  honor  and  credit  of  our  patriot  senator-soldier. 

July  10,  1854,  The  Homestead  Bill  being  under  consideration,  Sen 
ator  Shields  urged  liberality  towards  foreigners  intending  to  become 
citizens  in  the  disposition  of  the  public  lands. 


160  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


CHAPTER     XII. 


Admission  of  California — Senator  Shields'  Greatest  Speech — It  Stamps 
Him  as  a  Statesman  as  Well  as  a  Prophet — Would  Not  Widen 
the  Breach  Between  the  North  and  South  or  Excite  the  Passions 
or  Prejudices  of  One  Section  Against  the  Other — If  a  Republican 
Form  of  Government  Fails  Here,  It  Need  Never  Be  Attempted 
Again — Where  Compromise  Ends  Force  Begins,  and  Where 
Force  Begins  War  Begins — Gold  the  Cause  of  More  Than  Half 
the  Evils  of  Civilized  Society — No  Southern  Slave  Owner  Will 
Ever  Venture  to  Carry  His  Slaves  to  That  Country — The  Whole 
Country  United  Cannot  Force  Slavery  on  Californians,  Who  Will 
Carry  Your  Flag  Some  Day  Into  Asia  and  Through  China — 
Slavery  Was  Never  Intended  by  God  to  Be  There  and  Will  Not 
Be  Permitted  by  Men — You  Might  as  Well  Attempt  to  Plant 
Orange  Groves  in  Siberia  as  Establish  Slavery  in  California  or 
New  Mexico — It  Is  Inevitable  That  the  Power  of  the  Free  States 
Will  Preponderate  Over  the  Power  of  the  Slave  States — You 
Can  No  More  Equalize  the  States  Then  You  Can  Equalize  Their 
Population — The  North  Will  Never  Consent  to  See  One  Foot  of 
Free  Soil  Converted  Into  Slave  Soil — As  Well  Attempt  to  Con 
vert  a  Free  Man  Into  a  Slave — No  Human  Law  Can  Give  Abso 
lute  Property  in  Man — An  Attempt  at  Dissolution  of  the  Union 
Would  Be  War  of  Extermination  and  Desolation  of  Which  None 
But  God  Could  Foresee  the  End — The  Idea  of  Quietly  and 
Peaceably  Submitting  to  See  a  Separate  Confederacy  Is  Prepos 
terous — Very  Little  Short  of  Insanity. 


MR.   BELL'S    RESOLUTIONS. 

The  Senate  then  proceeded  to  the  consideration  of  the  special 
order,  being  Mr.  Foote's  motion  to  refer  Mr.  Bell's  resolutions  to 
a  committee  of  thirteen  members — the  pending  question  being  upon  an 
amendment  proposed  by  Mr.  Baldwin,  to  except  from  the  reference 
so  much  as  relates  to  the  admission  of  California  into  the  Union  as 
a  state. 

The  Vice-President  stated  that  the  pending  question  at  the  ad 
journment  yesterday  was  the  motion  of  the  Senator  from  Mississippi 
(Mr.  Foote)  to  postpone  the  further  consideration  of  the  subject  until 
to-morrow  at  one  o'clock,  and  that  at  that  time  it  be  made  the  special 
order  of  the  day;  and  on  this  motion  the  Senator  from  Illinois 
(Mr.  Shields)  was  entitled  to  the  floor. 

Mr.   Clay:     That   motion   has  exhausted  itself,   and  is   now   dead. 

The  Vice-President:  Unless  it  is  to  operate  from  the  day  on 
which  it  may  be  adopted. 

Mr.   Foote:     Mr.   President,    I  withdraw  that  motion. 

The  Vice-President:  The  motion  is  withdrawn:  and  in  that 
case,  the  Senator  from  Mississippi  is  entitled  to  the  floor. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  161 

Mr.  Foote:  Then  I  yield,  with  great  pleasure,  to  the  Senator 
from  Illinois. 

Mr.  Shields:  Mr.  President,  it  was  not  my  intention,  when  this 
debate  commenced,  to  take  any  part  in  it.  I  had  not  the  vanity  to 
suppose  that  anything  I  could  say  would  contribute  in  the  slightest 
degree  to  the  work  of  conciliation;  and  I  felt  extremely  anxious,  if 
I.  could  do  no  good,  to  abstain,  at  all  events,  from  doing  any  injury. 
But,  sir,  the  discussion  has  become  so  general,  and  so  many  have 
participated  in  it,  that  I  fear,  if  I  remain  any  longer  silent,  my 
silence  may  be  misconstrued,  and  my  course  misunderstood;  and  that 
it  is  due  to  myself,  and  my  constituents,  to  make  a  few  explanatory 
observations ;  and  1  promise  that  these  observations  will  be  the  honest 
convictions  of  my  mind. 

The  Senate,  sir,  has  hardly  yet  recovered  from  the  effects  of  its 
recent  great  loss.  Death  has  bereaved  this  body  of  one  of  its  most 
illustrious  members.  This  bereavement  will  be  long  felt  in  this 
Senate,  and  in  every  city,  town  and  hamlet  throughout  this  broad 
land,  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific  Ocean.  Sir,  one  of  the  great 
lights  of  this  continent  has  just  been  extinguished;  one  of  the  most 
brilliant  stars  of  our  political  galaxy  has  disappeared  forever.  A  star 
that  shed  its  luster,  not  only  on  the  proud  and  noble  state  of  South 
Carolina,  but  on  this  whole  country,  has  been  moved  from  our 
sight — translated,  I  trust,  to  a  higher  and  purer  region,  to  shine  in  a 
brighter  firmament.  Sir,  it  is  with  feelings  subdued  and  deepened  by 
this  sad  event,  that  I  enter  this  morning  upon  the  simple  and  humble 
duty  of  denning  my  position,  and  explaining  the  motives  that  will 
govern  my  future  action  in  this  body,  upon  the  delicate  questions  now 
under  consideration. 

The  state  of  Illinois,  which  I  have  the  honor  in  part  to  represent, 
has  thought  proper  to  give  me  instructions  for  my  guidance  and 
government  on  the  subject  of  slavery  in  the  territories.  I  recognize 
the  full  right  of  my  state  to  give  me  such  instructions,  and  I  con 
sider  it  to  be  my  duty,  as  one  of  the  Senators  from  that  state,  to 
obey  them.  I  regard  the  will  of  my  state,  when  fairly  expressed,  as 
a  political  trust,  .which  it  is  my  duty  to  discharge  in-  good  faith,  if  I 
can  do  so  without  any  violation  of  the  Constitution  of  my  country. 
The  resolutions  of  the  Legislature  of  Illinois  instruct  me  to  vote  for 
the  application  of  the  Wilmot  proviso  to  all  the  territories  acquired 
by  the  late  war  with  Mexico.  These  resolutions  I  consider  constitu 
tional,  and,  as  such,  it  is  my  duty  to  obey  them.  In  my  humble 
opinion  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  has  full  power  and  au 
thority  to  govern  all  the  territories,  including  the  District  of  Colum 
bia,  in  all  respects  whatsoever,  including  the  introduction  and  the 
exclusion  of  slavery,  subject  to  no  limitation  or  restriction,  except 
that  contained  in  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States.  In  other 
words,  I  believe  that  Congress  can  exercise  all  governmental  control 
over  the,  territories  which  is  not  in  conflict  with  the  provisions  of  the 
Constitution.  I  cannot  understand  the  argument  I  have  heard  urged  in 
this  chamber,  that  Congress  can  declare  war,  conquer  a  country,  sub 
jugate  a  people,  and  annex  both  country  and  people  to  the  United 
States,  and  yet  that  it  has  no  power  to  govern  them  after  they  have 
been  annexed.  Upon  this  principle  Congress  can  destroy  a  govern 
ment,  but  cannot  replace  it;  can  annex  a  people,  but  cannot  govern 
them;  can  regulate  a  territory,  but  cannot  regulate  the  people;  can 
govern  the  land  and  the  habitations,  biit  cannot  govern  the  inhab 
itants  of  the  territories.  Sir,  there  is  something  so  incomprehensible 
in  this  argument,  something  so  unreasonable  in  this  proposition,  that 
I  cannot  believe  it,  or  accept  it,  on  the  authority  of  any  man,  how 
ever  distinguished  as  a  statesman.  But  I  do  not  wish  to  pursue  this 
argument  any  further.  I  have  merely  alluded  to  it  for  the  purpose 


162  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

of  declaring  that  I  regard  the  instructions  as  constitutional,  and  that 
it  is  my  ducy,  as  well  as  my  determination,  to  obey  them. 

Sir,  in  saying  this  1  do  not  wish  to  be  understood  as  laying  down 
any  rule  for  the  government  of  others  in  similar  cases.  I  merely 
\vish  to  prescribe  a  rule  in  this  particular  case  for  my  own  govern 
ment — and  that  is,  to  obey  constitutional  instructions  or  resign.  This, 
I  take  it,  is  a  good,  honest,  old-fashioned,  Democratic  rule,  upon 
which  I  can  stand  and  act  with  honor  and  safety. 

It  will  be  readily  perceived  that  this  restriction  upon  my  action  will 
prevent  me  from  giving  my  support  to  the  proposition  now  under 
consideration,  or  to  any  compromise  on  the  question  of  slavery  in 
the  territories.  I  am  a  little  afraid  of  this  committee  of  thirteen, 
anyhow.  I  hardly  think  it  can  do  any  good,  and  I  am  afraid  it 
may  do  some  injury.  In  my  opinion,  the  mind  of  every  member  in 
this  Senate  has  been  long  made  up  on  all  these  questions.  A  great 
senatorial  committee  like  this  will  excite  great  public  expectation,  and 
if  this  expectation  be  disappointed,  the  effect  may  be  extremely 
prejudicial. 

Mr.  Foote  (interposing) :  I  wish  to  make  one  single  suggestion 
to  my  honorable  friend,  that  he  has  misunderstood  the  motion  which 
I  have  had  the  honor  to  present.  A  "compromise"  is  not  mentioned; 
"adjustment"  is  the  word.  And  if  he  is  in  favor  of  adjusting  the  ques 
tions,  he  must  go  for  the  motion. 

Mr.  Shields:  Well,  sir,  I  am  not  so  critical,  perhaps,  in  my 
knowledge  of  words,  as  my  honorable  friend  from  Mississippi,  and  i 
will  change  the  word  "compromise"  for  the  word  "adjustment." 
However,  in  acting  under  the  instructions  of  my  state,  I  am  determined 
to  act  in  good  faith ;  and,  therefore,  I  cannot  support  the  proposition 
of  my  honorable  friend  from  Mississippi  for  what  he  calls  the 
"adjustment"  of  these  questions  or  any  of  the  propositions  of  com 
promise  on  the  subject.  But,  sir,  while  this  is  the  case,  I  am  far 
from  thinking  that  it  is  my  duty,  as  a  Senator  from  Illinois,  knowing 
as  I  do  the  spirit  and  patriotism  of  the  people  of  that  state,  to  stand 
here  in  my  place  and  wage  a  war  of  fierce  denunciation  against  this 
and  every  other  proposition,  which  may  have  been  matured  and 
brought  forward  by  the  highest  minds  of  this  body  for  the  settlement 
and  adjustment  of  our  unfortunate  difficulties.  It  would  be  especially 
unworthy  of  me,  who  have  been  the  recipient  of  the  generous,  though 
perhaps  unmerited,  sympathy  of  this  whole  country,  to  contribute  my 
puny  efforts  in  this  body  to  widen  the  breach  between  the  North  and 
the  South,  and  to  excite  the  passions  and  prejudices  of  one  section 
of  this  great  country  against  another.  I  think  I  ought  to  be  one 
of  the  last  of  living  men  to  be  guilty  of  such  conduct.. 

Sir,  I  have  seen  northern  men  and  southern  men  stand  together 
shoulder  to  shoulder  in  many  a  struggle.  I  have  seen  northern  and 
southern  blood  mingle  on  many  a  field.  I  have  seen  northern  and 
southern  men  follow  the  glorious  standard  of  a  common  country  to 
common  victory.  And,  with  all  these  recollections  still  around  me, 
I  would  consider  myself  criminal  to  take  advantage  of  my  present 
position  to  excite  hate  and  animosity  between  brethren  of  the  same 
country,  having  the  same  glorious  history  and  the  same  common 
destiny,  the  same  pride  in  the  past  and  the  same  hope  for  the  future; 
especially  as  I  sincerely  believe  that  the  very  men  now  engaged  in  this 
unfortunate  controversy  would  to-morrow,  if  necessary,  unite  in  a 
common  struggle,  for  their  common  country,  against  a  hostile  world. 
Sir,  I  have  no  sympathy — no  communion  of  feeling — with  those  men 
who  employ  their  energies  in  exciting  and  maddening  one  portion  of 
their  countrymen  against  another.  I  have  seen  and  felt  the  ruin  and 
wretchedness  that  have  followed  the  success  of  such  unhallowed  efforts 
in  other  lands,  and  I  am  persuaded  that  a  similar  result  would  attend 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  163 

the  success  of  such  efforts  here.  Yes,  sir,  the  full  and  complete  suc 
cess  of  tnese  uniioiy  efforts  here  would  be  the  rum  01  tins  republican 
government,  the  destruction  of  this  great  temple  of  American  liberty. 

Mr.  President,  1  regret  to  say  that  the  proceedings  of  Congress, 
during  the  present  session,  have  been  characterized  by  extraordinary 
passion  and  excitement.  Criminations,  invectives  and  personalities 
have  too  often  disfigured  our  debates,  and  nave  threatened,  on 
some  occasions,  to  bring  us  into  angry  personal  collision.  These  were 
ominous  indications  in  an  American  Congress,  and  particularly  in  an 
American  Senate,  which  has  been  uniformly  distinguished  heretofore 
for  the  dignity,  propriety  and  decorum  of  its  proceedings,  .but,  sir, 
not  only  here,  but  throughout  the  whole  country,  the  indications 
seemed  ominous  of  some  impending  evil.  The  JNortn  was  in  a  state  of 
perfect  apathy,  while  the  South  was  in  a  furious  state  of  excitement ;  the 
North  was  glorifying  the  virtues  of  the  Wilmot  proviso,  while  the 
South  was  organizing  the  Southern  States,  and  preparing  to  assemble 
a  great  Southern  Convention  at  Nashville,  that  could  have  no  purpose 
— I  mean  to  say  no  practical  purpose — but  the  dissolution  of  this 
Union.  I  say  practical  purpose,  because  I  hold  that,  unless  the  South 
is  prepared  to  urge  matters  to  the  last  extremity,  that  convention 
ought  never  to  be  held.  In  my  opinion,  it  would  prove  deeply  in 
jurious  to  the  character  of  the  South.  Mr.  President,  I  looked  upon 
this  unnatural  state  of  things — this  singular  national  discordance — 
one  portion  of  the  same  country  in  apathy,  and  another  palpitating 
with  excitement;  one  portion  unmoved  and  indifferent,  and  the  other 
preparing  for  revolution,  as  the  presage  of  some  great  national  evil. 
1  know,  sir,  there  may  be  others  less  timid  than  i  am,  who  may 
have  looked  upon  all  this  with  something  like  indifference;  but  I  am 
not  one  of  these  indifferent  men ;  I  can  be  indifferent  in  nothing,  and 
least  of  all  upon  questions  that  involve,  not  only  the  existence  of  the 
government,  but  the  existence  of  liberal  government  throughout  the 
world.  To  me  this  is  not  merely  an  American  question;  it  is  a 
mundane  question.  I  look  upon  it  in  connection  with  the  question 
of  civil  liberty  and  human  progress  in  other  countries,  because  I  am 
convinced  that  if  the  great  experiment  of  republican  government 
fails  on  this  continent,  it  need  never  be  attempted  again  in  this  world. 

And,  sir,  I  began  to  fear  that  the  experiment  was  about  to  fail; 
that  the  glorious  institutions  which  you  have  received  as  a  legacy 
from  a  wise  and  noble  ancestry,  and  which  you  hold  in  trust,  not  for 
yourselves  only,  not  for  this  generation  alone,  but  for  future  genera 
tions,  for  posterity  and '  humanity,  were,  by  some  fatality,  by  some 
judgment  perhaps  of  Divine  wrath,  or  by  some  of  those  terrible  con 
junctures  which  destroy  the  best  of  human  institutions,  approachnig 
a  dark,  premature  and  inglorious  end.  And  was  there  not  cause, 
sir,  for  serious  alarm?  Was  it  not  felt  by  every  member  of  this  body? 
The  South  complains  of  grievances  and  aggressions,  and  complains 
vehemently.  I  think  the  South  exaggerates  these  grievances;  but 
doubtless  it  has  some  grounds  of  just  complaint.  But  let  me  say,  the 
North  complains  of  grievances  also,  and  it  has  just  grounds  of  com 
plaint  also.  Individual,  sectional  and  national  grievances  exist  under 
every  government  on  the  face  of  the  earth;  and  grievances,  I  fear, 
will  continue  to  exist  forever  under  every  form  of  human  government. 
But  suppose,  sir.  all  the  grievances  of  which  the  South  complains  to 
be  wholly  imaginary  (and  some  of  our  northern  friends  think  so),  does 
this  lessen  the  imminence  of  the  danger?  No,  sir;  by  no  means. 
On  the  contrary,  imaginary  grievances  are  often  more  dangerous 
than  real  ones.  Real  grievances  can  be  redressed;  for  imaginary 
grievances  there  is  no  remedy.  Sir,  more  than  half  the  great  con 
vulsions  that  have  shaken  this  world  have  sprung  from  imaginary 
grievances.  It  is  not  real  dangers  that  are  present  to  us;  it  is  pros- 


164  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

pective  dangers — dangers  that  loom  and  lower  in  the  distant  future — 
that  frighten  and  alarm  us  most.     These  are  the  dangers  that  excite 
men  to  acts  of  folly  and  urge  them  on  to  the  most  fearful  extremities. 
And,  sir,  there  are  times  and  seasons  when  it  is  impossible  to  account 
for  the  folly   of  human    conduct     anyhow.     There   are    periods   when 
men  and  nations   rush   blindly,   or,   rather,    with   their   eyes   open,   on 
certain  and  inevitable  destruction.     This  is  the  history   of  the  world. 
The  annals    of   nations   are    filled    with    instances    of   this   kind — with 
periodical   instances   of  folly  and  frenzy.     One    generation    builds   up 
and  another  pulls  down;   one  generation  founds   empires  and   another 
destroys  them.     This     has     been    the   history   of    the   world    for    six 
thousand  years,  and  will  continue,   I   fear,   to  be  its   history  forever. 
And,  without  meaning  to   cast  any  reflection  upon  the  generation   to 
which  I  belong,    I    must   say,    that   when    I    saw   the   total   failure   of 
the  people   of    Europe    in   their   recent    struggles,    their    unsuccessful 
efforts  to  ameliorate  their  condition  and  reform   their  institutions,    I 
began  to  fear  that  there  was  something  wrong  in  the  character  of  the 
present  age,    and   that   the    responsibilities    of   this   great   government 
had  fallen,  perhaps,  on  a  generation  unequal  to  the  present  crisis,  and 
incapable  of   wielding,   at  this  critical  juncture,   the    destinies   of  this 
great  republic.     But,   sir,  when  we  see  assembled  in  this  chamber,   as 
if  by  the  special   ordination   of    Providence,    the   highest   intellects   of 
this   nation ;    minds    matured    and   moderated    by   experience,    and    ex 
alted  and'ennobled  by  patriotism;   men  capable  of  comprehending  the 
dangers    and    difficulties    of   the    crisis,    and    having   the    courage    and 
capacity — and,    I    may    add,    the    national    reputation — to    grapple    with 
these  dangers,  and  triumph  over  them,  I  think  we  may  conclude,  and 
conclude  joyfully,  that  Heaven  still  smiles  on  this  favored  land;  that 
the  glorious  stars,  the  appropriate  emblem  of  this  great  Republic,  are 
not  yet  destined  to    set  in   darkness  and  blood,    but   to    illumine   for 
ages— I  hope  forever — the  broadest  and  brightest  political  firmament 
that  ever   sheltered   liberty,    civilization    and    humanity.     My    admira 
tion  and  enthusiasm  have  been  often   excited  this  session,  at  the  ex 
traordinary  efforts  of  the  great  statesmen  of  this  body,  to  work  out 
some  just  and  equitable   plan   for  the    settlement   of  our   unfortunate 
difficulties.     When  I    saw  the  distinguished  Senator  from    Kentucky, 
now  in  the  chair,  present  his  great  plan  of  national  compromise,  and 
when  I  listened  to  his  thrilling  eloquence  and  fearless  enunciation  of 
great  moral  truths,  in   favor  of  liberty  and  humanity— truths    as   old 
as  the  laws    that  govern   the  moral   world,    and   which   will    live   and 
kindle  the  hearts  of   millions  when  the  present  general  ion  is   molder- 
ing  in  the  dust— I  felt  that  there  is  a  heroism  higher  and  holier  than 
any  that  ever  inspired  a  conqueror  to  tread   his  way  through   blood 
and  battle    to    victory   and    immortality..    I    forgot    on    that    .occasion 
that  I  was  a  Democrat,  and  that  he  was  the  great  leader  of  the  Whig 
party.     I    remembered   nothing    but    the    great    cause    and    the    great 
advocate.      I    saw    nothing    but    the    great    republican    and    the    great 
American.     I  do  not  allude  to  the  distinguished   Senator  from   Ken 
tucky  for  the    purpose   of   invidious    distinction;    on    the    contrary,    I 
refer  to  him  as  the  type,   or   rather  the  central   figure    of   a  host   of 
intellectual    giants    who    have    employed    their    time    and    talents    and 
energies,    this    session,    in    the    great    republican    and    American    work 
of  compromise.     I  call  the  work  of  compromise  emphatically  Ameri 
can.     A  fearful  controversy  has  raged  here,  and  throughout  the  coun 
try,  this  whole  session.     A  controversy  that  excites  the  strongest  and 
deepest  feelings    of  our  nature — a    controversy,    as    it   were,    between 
sentiment  and   interest,  liberty  and  slavery.     And   yet,   no   man  now, 
either  in  this  body  or  in  the  other  hall,   seriously  contemplates  any 
other  result    than    its   amicable    adjustment,    by   an   honorable    and   a 
national  compromise.     Well,   sir,  my  notion  is,  that  this  controversy 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  165 

could  not  have  raged  one  month,  in  any  other  country  on  earth, 
without  a  national  convulsion.  Why  is  this,  sir?  Because  the  people 
of  this  country  are  trained  and  educated  to  settle  all  their  difficulties, 
public  and  private,  by  just  and  honorable  compromise,  while  the  peo 
ple  of  other  countries,  in  great  national  difficulties,  are  accustomed 
to  have  immediate  recourse  to  force.  Sir,  there  are  only  two  princi 
ples  employed  in  the  government  of  the  political  world — force  and 
compromise.  Some  nations  are  governed  by  both  principles,  others 
by  force  alone,  but  this  is  the  only  nation  that  has  always  been 
governed  by  compromise  since  the  foundation  of  the  government,  and 
it  must  continue  to  be  so  governed  as  long  as  it  continues  to  be  a 
republic.  Sir,  where  compromise  ends  force  begins,  and  where  force 
begins,  war  begins;  and  the  tocsin  of  civil  war  is  the  death-knell  of 
republicanism. 

Mr.  President,  I  am  in  favor  of  the  admission  of  California  into 
the  Union  as  a  state.  Here  there  is  no  room  for  compromise.  I 
am  also  in  favor  of  keeping  the  question  of  admission  unconnected 
with  any  of  the  other  exciting  questions  now  before  the  Senate.  A 
great  measure,  like  the  admission  of  an  independent  state,  should,  in 
my  opinion,  be  determined  on  its  own  intrinsic  merits,  and  not  in 
connection  with  any  other  question,  however  important.  If  Cali 
fornia  is  entitled  to  admission,  it  is  unjust  to  the  people  of  that  ter 
ritory,  and  unwise  as  a  principle  of  legislation,  to  make  that  ad 
mission  depend  upon  the  doubtful  issue  of  any  other  question.  You 
have  done  injustice  enough  to  the  territories  already;  you  have  re 
fused  to  give  them  governments  of  any  kind;  and  when  they  come 
here  with  governments  formed  by  themselves  you  refuse  to  sanction 
them.  Sir,  upon  the  annexation  of  New  Mexico  and  California,  it 
was  the  imperative  duty  of  Congress  to  extend  the  blessings  of 
government  to  the  people  of  those  territories  within  a  reasonable 
time.  No  considerations  of  policy  could  exonerate  Congress  from 
this  obligation.  The  highest  trust  that  God  commits  to  man  is  that 
of  government;  and  when  he  disregards  this  trust,  he  sins  against 
God's  appointment,  and  does  grievous  wrong  to  those  whom  fortune 
has  made  dependent  upon  him  for  government  and  protection.  Sir, 
you  have  done  wrong,  and  grievous  wrong,  to  the  people  of  the 
territories ;  you  tore  them  from  their  own  government ;  you  severed 
them  from  their  own  people ;  you  annexed  them  to  your  country ; 
you  made  them  a  part  of  your  people — and  all  by  force;  and  you 
refused  to  give  them  government  of  any  kind,  and  left  them  in  a  state 
of  anarchy.  You  poured  out  blood  and  treasure  to  win  these  terri 
tories,  and  when  you  acquired  them  you  abandoned  them.  Sir,  Con 
gress  has  consumed  more  time  in  talking,  quarreling  and  wrangling 
over  these  territorial  acquisitions,  without  doing  anything  for  them, 
than  your  army  took  to  conquer  Mexico,  dismember  that  country  and' 
annex  the  territories  to  the  United  States.  So  far  as  my  experience 
goes,  I  can  vouch  for  it  that  your  soldiers  perform  their  duty  much 
more  promptly  and  efficiently  than  your  statesmen. 

The  people  of  the  territories,  it  is  true,  have  formed  governments 
perhaps  better  adapted  to  their  anomalous  condition  than  any  that 
could  be  fashioned  for  them  by  the  wisdom  of  Washington.  And 
this  only  proves  that,  when  their  government  fails  to  provide  for 
any  portion  of  the  American  people,  they  are  competent  to  provide 
for  themselves.  In  my  opinion,  California  has  worked  out  the  most 
hope-giving  problem  of  this  age.  It  has  demonstrated  the  .  ca 
pacity  of  man  for  self-government.  The  mind  of  man  can  scarcely 
conceive  of  any  condition  in  which  human  beings  could  be  placed 
more  unfavorable  to  the  establishment  of  order  and  government  than 
that  of  California.  The  people  were  an  assemblage  of  every  kindred, 
tongue  and  nation — thrown  together  promiscuously  in  a  wild,  dis- 


166  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

tant,  desert  region  of  the  world — away  from  all  the  restraints  of 
civilization,  ana  engaged,  not  in  the  peaceful  pursuits  of  agriculture, 
but  in  wild  adventure  and  a  reckless  grapple  ior  gold,  "the  root  of 
all  evil,"  and  certainly  the  cause  of  more  than  half  the  evils  of 
civilized  society.  Now,  sir,  I  should  like  to  know  how  the  experi 
ment  of  leaving  such  a  people,  under  such  circumstances,  without 
any  government,  would  have  worked  in  any  other  country  in  the 
world.  The  rulers  of  Europe  think  it  necessary  to  employ  armies  of 
soldiers,  and  armies  of  policemen,  and  dungeons,  racks  and  scaf 
folds,  to  keep  their  loyal  people  in  order  and  subjection.  What 
would  such  rulers  have  predicted  of  California?  Why,  that  it  would 
prove  to  be  an  earthly  tophet,  a  sort  of  terrestial  pandemonium. 
But  no  such  thing,  sir.  To  the  honor  of  human  nature  and  to  the 
eternal  honor  of  American  character  that  imbued  that  society  with 
American  loyalty  to  law  and  order,  the  people  of  California  estab 
lished  a  government,  and  that  government,  from  the  hour  of  its 
establishment  till  this  hour,  has  given  more  effectual  protection  to 
life  and  property  and  the  pursuits  of  industry  than  any  government 
of  Europe  during  the  same  period. 

Sir,  California  furnishes  the  strongest  demonstration  of  this  age 
in  favor  of  the  inherent  capacity  of  man  for  self-government,  when 
left  to  the  free  exercise  of  his  native  faculties.  And  it  is  the  loudest 
condemnation  of  those  systems  of  government  which  first  debase  and 
brutalize  man,  and  then  punish  and  oppress  him  because  he  is  de 
based.  Without  the  aid  of  law,  or,  rather,  by  virtue  of  a  better  law 
than  ever  was  enacted  by  Congress — the  law  of  truth  and  justice 
in  their  own  hearts — the  people  of  California  organized  their  society, 
framed  a  constitution,  and  established  a  government,  and  they  now 
present  that  constitution  for  our  acceptance;  and,  sir,  if  we  have 
the  law  of  truth  and  justice  in  our  hearts,  we  will  receive  this  con 
stitution  at  once,  and  welcome  California  into  the  Union. 

But,  sir,  it  is  said  by  some  that  California  must  be  remanded  back 
to  a  territorial  condition;  that  it  must  remain  quietly  in  that  condi 
tion  until  Congress  finds  it  convenient  to  give  it  a  government.  Others 
say  that  California  can  have  no  government  until  Congress  agrees 
upon  some  general  plan  for  the  settlement  of  all  our  difficulties :  First, 
our  territorial  difficulties — a  government  for  Utah,  and  another  for 
New  Mexico;  secondly,  the  settlement  of  the  boundary  between  New 
Mexico  and  Texas,  and  whether  we  are  to  have  a  slave  or  a  free  state 
carved  out  of  "Texas;"  and,  finally,  the  settlement  of  the  question  of 
slavery  and  the  slave  trade  in  the  District  of  Columbia.  Now,  sir,  my 
opinion  is,  that  if  you  keep  California  out  of  the  Union  until  you 
settle  all  these  questions  by  satisfactory  adjustment,  it  needs  a  vast 
amount  of  Christian  patience,  because,  at  the  rate  you  despatch  busi 
ness  here,  California  may  stand  some  chance  of  admission  at  some 
indefinite  time  between  now  and  the  millennium.  Sir,  this  is  perfect 
mockery.  It  is  to  say  substantially  to  the  people  of  California:  "You 
must  break  up  your  government,  resolve  yourselves  again  into  a 
state  of  anarchy,  go  back  and  live  quietly  and  peaceably,  and  behave 
yourselves  well,  and  neither  rob  nor  kill  one  another,  if  you  can 
avoid  it,  until  we  can  settle  all  our  difficulties,  all  questions  con 
nected  with  slavery,  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  North  and  South,  and 
then  we  will  extend  the  blessing  of  government  to  you — we  will 
give  you  a  government  exactly  suited  to  your  condition."  This,  sir, 
I  suppose,  is  Congressional  justice  to  California.  I  wish  to  say,  most 
respectfully  to  my  Southern  friends,  that  I  cannot  conceive  what  ad 
vantage  they  expect  to  derive  from  the  rejection  of  California.  It 
puzzles  me  to  divine  the  secret  of  Southern  policy  on  this  point. 
Whether  California  is  a  state  or  territory,  whether  it  has  a  govern 
ment  or  no  government,  no  Southern  slaveowner  will  ever  venture 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  167 

to  carry  his  slaves  to  that  country.  Slavery  can  never  be  established 
there.  With  law  or  without  law  Southern  men  will  never  dare  to 
carry  their  slaves  there.  The  people  of  California  are  working  put  a 
great  social  problem — a  problem  that  has  never  yet  been  worked  out 
successfully  anywhere  else,  and  that  is,  to  make  labor,  hard  labor, 
dignified  and  respectable.  I  trust  in  God  they  may  succeed.  But 
do  you  think  the  people  engaged  in  this  work  will  suffer  themselves 
to  be  jostled  by  slaves?  No,  sir;  never.  The  sons  of  Southern 
planters,  the  high-spirited  sons  of  Southern  gentlemen,  would  be  the 
first  to  resist  and  resent  such  an  experiment.  Sir,  the  whole  united 
South  dare  not  venture  to  carry  slaves  to  California  for  the  purpose 
of  establishing  slavery  there.  In  California,  at  this  moment,  there  are 
one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  men;  not  old  men,  women  and  chil 
dren,  but  young,  active,  daring,  adventurous  men — the  flower  of  the 
youth  of  our  country — men  such  as  never  settled  a  new  country 
before.  Before  a  year  rolls  around,  California  will  number  half  a 
million  of  the  same  sort.  If  I  searched  this  world  for  an  army,  I 
would  take  the  men  collected  in  California.  I  tell  you,  sir,  the  South 
and  the  North,  and  the  whole  country  united  can  never  force  slavery 
on  them.  Napoleon  trampled  down  Europe  with  fewer  men  and  worse 
material.  Sir,  they  are  laying  the  foundation  of  a  great  empire  on 
the  shore  of  the  Pacific — a  mighty  empire — an  empire  that  at  some 
future  day  will  carry  your  flag,  your  commerce,  your  arts  and  your 
arms  into  Asia,  and  through  China,  Hindostan  and  Persia  into 
Western  Europe.  Talk  about  carrying  slavery  there,  of  imposing 
such  a  blight  upon  that  people,  of  withering  their  strength  and 
paralyzing  their  energies  by  such  an  institution!  No,  sir;  such  a 
thing  was  never  intended  by  God,  and  will  never  be  permitted  by  men. 
I  am  one  of  those  who  believe  that  the  laws  of  Mexico  abolishing 
slavery  are  still  in  force  and  operation  in  California  and  New  Mexico. 
I  understand  the  great  principle  of  law  to  be  this:  When  one  country 
conquers  another,  the  political  laws,  that  is,  the  laws  prescribing  the 
duty  of  the  subject  or  citizen  to  the  government,  are  abrogated. 
And  why?  Because  the  conquered  government  goes  out  of  existence 
and  the  conquering  government  takes  its  place;  but  municipal  laws — 
laws  between  man  and  man,  made  for  the  protection  of  life  and 
property — remain  in  force,  and  must  of  necessity  remain  in  force,  for 
the  preservation  of  society,  until  modified  or  repealed  by  positive 
enactment  on  the  part  of  the  conquering  government.  Now,  this  is 
an  old  principle  of  law,  a  little  older  than  modern  civilization,  but  it 
has  been  as  seriously  questioned  and  denied  on  this  floor  as  if  it 
"had  arisen  for  the  first  time  on  the  conquest  of  Mexico.  It  is  some 
times  urged  here,  that  our  constitution  carries  slavery  with  it  where- 
ever  it  goes,  unless  positively  excluded  by  law;  in  other  words,  that 
slavery  is  the  normal  law  of  this  Republic.  I  think  the  principle  is 
just  the  reverse.  Slavery,  being  in  violation  of  natural  right,  can 
only  exist  by  positive  enactment;  and  the  constitution  of  this  country 
only  tolerates  slavery  where  it  exists,  but  neither  extends  nor  estab 
lishes  it  anywhere.  But,  sir,  I  have  heard  it  seriously  argued  in  this 
Senate  that  the  laws  and  edicts  abolishing  slavery  in  Mexico  were 
all  irregular,  and  therefore  void;  and  that  slavery  was  in  full  force 
in  that  country  at  the  time  of  the  annexation  of  these  territories.  It 
is  extremely  hard  to  answer  such  an  argument  as  this.  This  is  em 
phatically  a  chivalrous  argument,  which,  though  it  may  not  convince 
a  man,  is  well  calculated  to  astound  him.  I  will  merely  say  that  the 
poor  Mexicans  made  a  great  many  honest  and  earnest  attempts  to 
abolish  slavery,  and  if  they  have  failed  to  accomplish  that  object,  they 
have  been  very  unfortunate  in  all  their  efforts.  I  have  no  doubt 
that  the  people  of  Mexico  will  be  highly  edified  when  they  learn 
that  their  old  acquaintances,  the  "Norte  Americanos,"  about  the  time 


168  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

they  discovered  the  "El  Dorado"  in  California  made  another  dis 
covery,  and  that  is,  that  their  laws,  edicts,  and  constitution,  to  the 
contrary  notwithstanding,  slavery  was  still  in  full  force  and  operation 
in  that  country,  without  the  people  themselves  being  aware  of  the 
fact.  I  think  when  they  hear  this,  they  will  come  to  the  conclusion 
that  we  are  as  invincible  in  logic  as  we  are  in  battle. 

But,  sir,  I  will  drop  the  subject.  I  care  not  whether  there  is 
any  Mexican  law  or  American  law  there,  or  whether  the  Wilmot 
proviso  or  the  Jefferson  proviso  ever  be  extended  over  those  terri 
tories,  slavery  can  never  be  established  in  California  or  New  Mexico. 
The  climate,  the  soil,  and  the  productions  forbid  it.  In  a  word,  the 
principle  of  the  Wilmot  proviso  is  extended  over  the  country  by 
the  law  of  nature — by  the  law  of  God — as  the  distinguished  Senator  from 
Massachusetts  (Mr.  Webster)  emphatically  expressed  it,  and  were  I 
permitted  to  act  upon  my  own  judgment,  I  would  leave  it  under 
the  operation  of  that  law.  Sir,  you  might  as  well  undertake  to  plant 
orange  groves  in  Siberia  as  establish  slavery  in  California  or  New 
Mexico. 

I  will  now  notice  the  question  of  boundary  between  New  Mexico 
and  Texas.  I  admire  Texas  as  highly  as  any  man  living;  I  like  the 
state  and  the  people;  they  fought  gallantly  and  successfully,  and 
achieved  their  independence  by  a  struggle  as  glorious  and  extraordi 
nary  as  any  of  the  present  age.  I  will  say,  also,  that  we  ought  not  to 
criticise  the  claim  of  Texas  too  closely;  that  we  ought  to  be  liberal 
to  that  young  and  gallant  state.  If  there  be  a  doubt,  it  ought  to  be  re 
solved  in  her  favor.  But,  to  my  mind,  there  is  no  doubt  in  the  case. 
Texas  has  no  right,  claim  or  title  to  any  portion  of  New  Mexico,, 
either  on  this  side  or  the  other  side  of  the  Rio  Grande.  She  never 
conquered  it,  never  occupied  it,  never  reduced  it  to  possession  and 
never  exercised  any  authority  over  it.  She  has  no  more  title  to 
Santa  Fe  than  she  has  to  San  Francisco — not  a  particle.  That  coun 
try,  and  the  whole  of  that  country,  was  under  the  law,  jurisdiction  and 
authority  of  Mexico  when  it  was  wrested  from  that  country  by  the 
arms  of  the  United  States.  I  care  nothing  about  maps ;  I  take  facts, 
and  these  are  the  facts.  I  venture  to  say,  further,  that  in  my  opinion 
Texas  never  conquered  all  the  country  to  the  lower  Rio  Grande.  There 
is  a  portion  of  Coahuila,  south  of  New  Mexico,  on  the  Texas  side  of 
the  Rio  Grande,  which  I  scarcely  think  she  ever  conquered.  At  all 
events  I  can  say  that  when,  at  one  time  during  the  Mexican  War,  I 
was  wandering  along  the  Rio  Grande,  I  found  a  Mexican  town  in  the 
^tate  of  Coahuila,  on  the  Texan  side  of  the  river,  living  quietly  under 
Mexican  law  and  Mexican  authority;  and  if  they  had  ever  been  con 
quered  by  Texas,  it  was  wholly  without  their  knowledge,  for  they  were 
living  in  the  most  happy  ignorance  of  such  conquest.  But  while  this 
is  my  opinion,  I  am  ready  and  willing  to  pay  to  Texas,  for  such 
claim  as  she  has,  enough  to  wipe  out  her  whole  state  debt.  That  debt 
was  contracted  in  a  noble  cause — the  struggle  for  liberty — the  war  of 
her  independence.  The  United  States  has  got  the  benefit  of  that 
struggle  by  the  annexation  of  the  country,  and  I  hold  that  it  is  only  a 
generous  duty,  which  the  government  ought  to  fulfill,  to  pay  Texas  a 
sufficient  sum  to  wipe  out  the  whole  of  her  state  debt. 

On  the  question  of  making  a  new  state  in  Texas,  I  am  prepared 
to  say  that  I  feel  myself  bound  to  comply  with  every  stipulation,  con 
dition  and  obligation  of  the  resolutions  of  annexation.  Whatever  the 
stipulations  are,  we  are  bound  by  them.  This  nation  is  bound,  by 
every  principle  of  honor  and  good  faith,  to  fulfill  its  obligations  with 
Texas.  No  man  can  give  any  reason  for  the  violation  of  these  stipula 
tions  that  he  cannot  give  for  the  violation  of  every  human  obligation. 
I  do  not  know,  sir,  the  opinion  of  my  state  on  this  subject,  but  I  take 
it  for  granted  that  the  State  of  Illinois  will  never  so  far  forget  her 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  169 

duty  to  this  nation  and  her  own  character  as  to  violate  the  plighted 
faith  of  this  government,  i  do  not  think  there  is  a  man  in  my  state 
who  will  not  consider  himself  bound  by  the  engagements  of  this  gov 
ernment.  The  Mormons,  while  they  lived  in  that  state,  were  accused 
of  assuming  that  they  had  authority  from  God  to  violate  their  engage 
ments  with  men.  But  they  have  left  the  state,  and  1  do  not  think  we 
have  any  political  Mormons  in  Illinois  now.  But  I  must  be  permitted 
to  say  that  I  think  Congress  has  no  right  to  take  the  initiative  in  this 
matter.  I  think  there  is  a  wrong  here;  the  initiative  ought  to  be  taken 
by  Texas.  It  is  for  her  to  take  the  preliminary  steps,  designate  the 
territory,  and  organize  a  new  state,  and  when  that  state  asks  for  ad 
mission  into  the  Union,  if  it  comes  within  the  conditions  of  the  resolu 
tions  of  annexation,  it  is  the  duty  of  Congress  to  admit  it.  But  I  sup 
pose  the  reason  our  southern  friends  are  so  anxious  to  squeeze  a 
state  out  of  Texas  at  this  time  is  to  bring  a  slave  state  into  the 
Union  in  conjunction  with  California,  to  preserve  the  balance  of 
power,  to  maintain  the  equilibrium  in  the  Senate.  Now,  sir,  I  think 
there  is  one  thing  to  which  southern  gentlemen  must  make  up  their 
minds,  and  that  is  to  submit  to  what  is  inevitable.  The  whole  world 
must  submit  to  what  is  inevitable,  and  the  South  must  submit  to  it, 
like  the  rest  of  mankind.  I  tell  you,  sir,  what  I  think  is  inevitable — 
that  the  free  states  will  outnumber  the  slave  states,  and  that  the  power 
of  the  free  states  will  preponderate  over  the  power  of  the  slave  states. 
The  South  will  lose  its  relative  power  in  this  nation.  It  is  doing  so 
every  day:  not  by  the  action  of  government,  but  by  the  action  of  ir 
resistible  laws — laws  that  control  the  moral,  social  and  political  condi 
tion  of  man.  You  may  as  well  talk  of  equalizing  the  population  as  of 
equalizing  the  states.  There  is  another  thing  the  South  may  as  well 
understand  (I  mention  this  as  a  prediction),  and  that  is,  that  the  people 
of  the  North  will  never  consent  to  see  one  foot  of  free  soil  converted 
into  slave  soil,  if  they  can  prevent  it  by  constitutional  resistance.  I 
believe  the  North  does  not  contemplate  any  other  mode  of  resistance. 
If  free  territory  be  annexed,  it  must  remain  free,  until  as  a  state  it  may 
choose  to  change  its  condition.  If  slave  territory  be  annexed  (Cuba 
for  instance)  let  it  remain  slave  territory  until  as  a  state  it  chooses 
to  change  its  condition.  Sir,  it  seems  to  me  there  is  nothing  unfair 
in  all  this;  on  the  contrary,  that  it  is  just  and  equitable.  No  one,  I 
think,  in  this  advanced  age  of  the  world  should  attempt  to  convert  a 
free  man  into  a  slave,  or  free  territory  into  slave  territory. 

Mr.  President,  I  sincerely  believe  that  if  the  South  had  not  assumed 
the  extraordinary  position  that  slavery  is  the  normal  law  of  this 
country;  that,  like  the  electric  fluid,  it  pervades  all  space;  that  it 
exists  throughout  this  whole  land,  where  not  expressly  excluded  by 
law;  that  slaveholders  can  carry  their  slaves  like  their  horses  to 
California  and  New  Mexico,  by  force  and  virtue  of  the  Constitution 
of  the  United  States,  and  contrary  to  the  municipal  laws  of  Mexico 
still  in  force  there,  the  terrible  feeling  awakened  in  the  North  on  the 
subject  of  the  Wilmot  proviso  would  never  have  found  such  general 
expression  in  that  portion  of  the  country.  When  southern  men  de 
clare  that  slaves  are  like  horses,  mere  chattels;  that  they  can  carry  them 
with  them  into  California  and  New1  Mexico  by  virtue  of  the  Constitu 
tion  ;  that  'the  Constitution  protects  'the  right  of  'property  in  chattels,' 
and  consequently  in  slaves,  the  northern  feeling  revolts  against  such 
claims.  And  even  the  very  best  friends  of  the  South  are  compelled  to 
reject  such  untenable  pretensions.  Sir,  I  cannot  believe  that  you 
southern  men  (Mr.  Clay  in  the  chair)  have  absolute  property  in  your 
slaves.  You  have  property  in  their  service,  and  that  service  is  per 
petual.  Slavery  is  a  state  of  perpetual  servitude,  and  you  have  a  right 
to  employ  all  necessary  power  over  the  man  to  enforce  such  service. 
But  you  have  no  absolute  property  in  the  man,  in  that  mysterious 


170  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

being  composed  of  body  and  soul ;  you  do  not  own  him  as  you  own 
your  horse,  because  no  human  law  can  give  you  such  property  in  him. 
Sir,  slavery  was  never  understood  in  this  sense  in  any  country,  neither 
among  the  Romans,  Greeks  or  even  the  Mohammedans,  and  it  is  to 
be  deeply  regretted  that  such  a  claim  should  be  urged  by  Christians. 

I  have  already  said  that  the  South  may  give  up  all  idea  of  an 
equilibrium.  Here  it  never  existed,  and  never  can  exist.  It  is  a 
most  fanciful  notion  at  best — the  mere  dream  of  a  political  visionary. 
You  cannot  balance  political  power;  you  cannot  weigh  it  in  scales; 
you  cannot  regulate  it  by  any  system  of  equipoise.  The  thing  is  simply 
impossible.  Why,  sir,  South  Carolina — a  proud  little  state,  spirited  and 
intelligent — has  wielded  more  political  power  in  this  confederacy  for 
several  years  past  than  some  of  the  larger  states  of  the  Union.  The 
equilibrium  has  been  often  tried,  but  has  always  failed.  The  French 
tried  it,  as  they  have  tried  every  kind  of  experiment.  After  their  first 
revolution  they  established  a  government,  most  fancifully  constructed, 
upon  an  equilibrium  compounded  of  territory  and  population.  It  was 
the  delight  of  the  enthusiasts  of  that  age.  No  liberal  politician  of  that 
day  seemed  fully  to  appreciate  the  absurdity  of  the  experiment  but 
Edmund  Burke;  and  that  great  English  statesman — I  should  say  Irish 
statesman,  but  England  appropriated  him  to  herself,  as  she  does 
.all  renowned  Irishmen — that  great  statesman,  I  mean  to  say,  ridiculed 
the  whole  scheme,  pointed  out  its  absurdity  and  impracticability,  aud 
predicted  its  speedy  destruction.  And,  sir,  the  prediction  was  soon 
verified. 

The  very  first  heave  of  the  great  political  mass  shattered  the  gov 
ernment  into  a  thousand  fragments,  and  buried  its  projectors  under 
its  ruins.  The  experiment,  therefore,  wholly  failed  in  France.  After 
the  fall  of  Napoleon  the  Holy  Alliance  tried  a  similar  experiment,  and 
if  any  body  of  men  ever  possessed  the  power  to  carry  out  such  an 
experiment,  the  members  of  the  Holy  Alliance  did  at  that  time. 
They  settled  the  relative  power  and  condition  of  the  several  states, 
and  established  a  great  continental  system  upon  what  they  called  the 
equilibrium  of  Europe.  Sir,  I  should  like  to  know  what  has  become 
of  that  system?  I  should  like  to  find  out  the  state  of  the  equilibrium 
of  Europe  now? 

Sir,  in  my  opinion,  the  Czar  of  Russia  could  throw  the  whole 
of  Europe  at  this  moment,  with  the  exception,  perhaps,  of  France  and 
England,  into  one  scale ;  and  he  would  only  have  to  throw  his  sworl 
into  the  same  scale,  and  in  twelve  months  Europe  would  be  Cossack 
from  the  Bosphorus  to  the  British  Channel.  So  the  experiment  of 
an  equilibrium  has  utterly  failed  in  Europe.  Sir,  it  never  has  succeeded, 
and  never  can  succeed.  The  thing  is  impossible  and  impracticable.  You 
never  can  maintain  a  permanent  equilibrium  between  states,  or  nations, 
or  parts  of  nations.  But  I  am  wasting  time  unnecessarily  upon  such 
a  subject. 

Now,  sir,  if  all  the  dangers  which  the  South  sees  in  the  far  distant 
future  were  at  this  moment  present  and  pressing  upon  us,  I  would 
most  respectfully  ask  southern  gentlemen  to  tell  me  what  remedy 
they  would  propose  in  such  a  case?  Say,  a  dissolution  of  this  con 
federacy — the  peaceable  separation  of  the  states — an  amicable  destruc 
tion  of  this  government?  I  would  just  as  soon  expect  to  see  a  high 
spirited  southern  gentleman  quietly  stand  up  to  have  the 
whip  applied  to  his  back,  as  to  see  the  people  of  this  country  sit  down 
quietly  and  look  tamely  and  unmoved  on  the  destruction  of  their  gov 
ernment.  No,  sir;  the  very  attempt  would  be  war;  the  beginning  of  a 
war  of  which  none  but  God  could  foresee  the  end ;  a  war  of  extermina 
tion  and  desolation ;  a  continuous,  ceaseless,  perpetual  war ;  a  war  to  be 
transmitted  from  father  to  son,  from  generation  to  generation,  until 
your  great  Anglo-American  race,  now  the  pride  and  boast  and  glory 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  171 

of  this  continent,  would  become  a  byword,  a  scorn  and  a  warning 
to  the  world.  The  very  energy  of  your  race,  that  terrible  energy 
which  is  making  you  masters  of  this  continent,  would  be  the  motive 
power  to  accelerate  its  own  destruction — you  would  devour  yourselves. 
But  does  any  sane  man  suppose  that  the  Great  Northwest,  with  all  its 
millions — that  world  that  is  growing  up  between  the  headwaters  of 
the  Ohio  and  the  headwaters  of  the  Missouri,  between  the  Alleghany 
and  the  Rocky  Mountains — will  ever  peaceably  submit  to  see  the  mouth 
of  the  Mississippi  River  in  the  possession  of  a  foreign  government? 
Never,  sir,  never.  With  that  people  it  would  not  be  a  question  of  rea 
son  ;  it  would  be  above  all  reason ;  it  would  be  a  question  of  necessity 
and  existence;  a  thing  which  they  never  would  quietly  submit  to.  But 
there  is  no  danger  of  anything  of  the  kind.  The  people  of  the  valley 
of  the  Mississippi  can  never  separate.  They  may  talk  about  it,  and 
threaten  it,  but  they  never  will  attempt  anything  so  disastrous.  They 
are  one  people,  tied  together  by  the  indissoluble  bonds  of  physical 
nature.  For  weal  or  woe,  for  good  or  evil,  the  whole  people  of  the 
Mississippi  Valley  must  share  the  same  fate  and  the  same  destiny. 

And  does  any  man  suppose  that  this  people,  occupying  about  one 
eighteenth  of  the  habitable  globe,  will  ever  submit  quietly  and  peace 
ably  to  see  the  southeastern  states  establish  a  separate  confederacy? 
The  idea  is  preposterous — very  little  short  of  insanity. 

But  suppose  the  Southern  Confederacy  was  now  established,  that  it 
was  quietly  and  peaceably  established  this  moment,  what  would  be  the 
actual  condition  of  the  Confederacy?  It  could  not  exist  a  single  day 
without  a  close  and  intimate  connection  with  some  great  nation  having 
all  the  elements  of  industrial,  financial  and  commercial  power.  The 
South  possesses  none  of  these  elements.  It  has  plenty  of  cotton,  and 
it  has  brave  men  and  lovely  women,  but  it  is  wholly  destitute  of  all 
the  other  material  elements  of  national  power.  Every  man  that  knows 
anything  knows  this.  The  Southern  Confederacy,  therefore,  would  be 
compelled  by  necessity  to  enter  into  a  strict  alliance  with  some  great 
nation — that  nation  would  doubtless  be  England.  Now,  old  England 
is  not  a  whit  more  partial  to  slavery  than  New  England  ;  and  English 
men  have  a  peculiar  fondness  for  enforcing  their  own  views  upon  their 
loving  allies.  But,  sir,  what  would  be  the  character  of  an  alliance 
between  such  a  nation  and  such  a  Confederacy?  It  would  be  supremacy 
on  the  one  hand,  and  dependence  on  the  other;  it  would  be  the  worst 
kind  of  dependence,  having  all  the  disadvantages,  and  none  of  the 
advantages,  of  colonial  dependence. 

In  fact,  the  Southern  Confederacy  would  be  a  mere  colony  of 
masters  and  slaves  to  raise  cotton  for  the  factories  of  England.  Be 
sides,  sir,  it  is  my  firm  conviction  that  the  institution  of  slavery,  as  it 
now  exists  in  the  South,  would  not  last,  in  its  present  shape,  for  the 
space  of  twenty  years  in  that  Southern  Confederacy.  The  South  might 
as  well  attempt  to  shut  out  the  pressure  of  the  atmosphere,  as  to  shut 
out  the  whole  pressure  of  the  civilized  world  on  its  cherished  institu 
tions.  Another  Chinese  wall  would  not  be  sufficient  to  protect  the 
Confederacy  from  the  influences  of  abolitionism  flowing  in  upon  it  and 
invading  it  from  every  quarter  of  the  civilized  world.  Sir,  in  saying 
this,  I  may  be  permitted  to  add  that  the  effect  of  abolition  at  this 
time  in  the  South  would  prove  most  disadvantageous  to  the  slaves.  I 
think  the  negroes  would  be  the  principal  sufferers  by  the  change. 

I  listened  the  other  day  to  the  eloquent  remarks  of  the  gentleman 
from  Virginia  (Mr.  Hunter)  and  I  heartily  concur  with  him  in  nearly 
all  his  opinions  and  statements  on  this  subject.  All  I  have  seen,  and 
heard,  and  read,  convince  me  that  where  there  are  two  distinct  races 
in  the  same  community,  one  inferior  and  the  other  superior,  like  the 
negro  and  the  white  race,  a  state  of  mild  and  gentle  slavery  is  the 
safest  and  happiest  condition  for  the  inferior  race.  Equality  of  rights 


172  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

and  equality  in  the  hard  struggle  of  life  result  in  the  insensible  but 
certain  extermination  of  the  inferior  race.  You  may  give  the  slave 
liberty  if  you  please,  but  that  very  liberty  is  his  destruction.  If  you 
emancipate  the  slaves  and  wish  to  save  the  negro,  you  must  separate 
the  races.  God  only  knows  how  this  is  to  be  done,  but  it  is  my  solemn 
conviction  that  the  universal  emancipation  of  the  African  race  of  this 
country  would  lead  to  the  gradual  and  insensible  but  certain  ex 
tinction  of  that  race. 

Sir,  the  history  of  this  very  country  proves  the  truth  of  this  as 
sertion.  Where  now  are  the  Indian  tribes  that  once  roamed  in  wild 
freedom. over  this  continent?  The  history  of  Mexico  proves  it.  Where 
now  are  the  Tlascalans,  the  Tolucans,  the  Aztecs,  and  the  other 
numerous  Indian  nations  of  that  country?  The  history  of  the  French 
and  British  West  Indies  proves  it.  It  is  a  melancholy  fact,  but  it  is  a 
fact,  that  the  negroes  in  these  islands  are  rapidly  becoming  extinct. 
But,  sir,  let  the  consequence  be  what  it  may  to  the  negro,  or  the  white, 
my  opinion  is,  that  if  a  Southern  Confederacy  ever  be  constituted 
(which  God  in  his  mercy  avert!),  the  institution  of  slavery,  as  it  now 
exists,  will  not  continue  in  existence,  in  its  present  shape,  for  a  quarter 
of  a  century. 

Mr.  President,  I  firmly  believe  that  the  rights  of  the  South,  not 
withstanding  all  the  annoyances  to  which  they  are  subjected,  are  better 
protected  under  our  present  Constitution  and  government  than  they 
could  possibly  be  by  any  other  scheme  or  plan  which  the  ingenuity  of 
man  could  devise.  They  are  protected  against  the  foreign  world,  the 
world  abroad,  by  the  character,  and  power,  and  majesty  of  this  great 
nation.  They  are  protected  from  the  North  by  the  obligation  and 
guarantees  of  the  Constitution.  You  will  say  no ;  you  will  say  the  North 
does  not  respect  these  guarantees.  But  I  say  the  _  Constitution  is  a 
restraint  upon  the  North,  a  powerful  restraint ;  it  imposes  some  re 
straint  on  all,  even  on  the  rankest  abolitionists,  and  it  imposes  a  bind 
ing  restraint  on  all  those,  whatever  may  be  their  abstract  opinions,  who 
love  their  Constitution,  and  their  government,  and  their  country — their 
whole  country — and  who  prefer  the  safety  and  perpetuity  of  this  great 
republic  to  the  abolition  of  slavery  or  the  emancipation  of  the  negro; 
and  I  need  scarcely  say  that  these  constitute  a  vast  majority  of  the 
northern  people. 

It  is  my  opinion,  then,  that  the  true  policy  as  well  as  the  duty  of 
the  South  is  loyalty  to  the  Constitution  and  fealty  to  the  government. 
This  is  the  policy  and  duty  of  the  North  also — the  policy  and  duty  of. 
the  whole  American  people.  Let  us  preserve  our  Constitution,  and 
fulfill  all  its  obligations  with  true  American  honor  and  honesty,  if  we 
wish  to  preserve^  this  great  American  republican  government.  I  will 
no  longer  detain  the  Senate. 

Several  Senators:     Go  on  as  long  as  you  wish. 

Mr.  Shields:  I  thank  the  members  of  the  Senate  for  their  kind 
ness  and  patience,  but  I  do  not  wish  to  trespass  any  further.  However, 
there  is  one  matter  I  forgot  to  allude  to.  I  have  said  that  it  is  the 
policy  of  the  North  as  well  as  the  South  to  stand  honestly  and  faith 
fully  by  the  Constitution— that  every  patriot  and  honest  man  is  bound 
by  its  guarantees.  In  this  spirit  I  am  prepared  to  vote  for  any  reason 
able  bill  for  the  restoration  of  fugitive  slaves.  The  clause  of  the 
Constitution  which  provides  for  this  subject  is  as  binding  on  me  as  any 
other  provision  of  that  instrument,  and  I  am  ready  and  willing  to  per 
form  my  obligation  in  this  matter.  I  have  done. 

As  I  sit  at  my  table  writing  these  lines  I  face  a  large 
steel  engraving  of  the  United  States  Senate  in  1850,  en 
graved  by  Robert  Whitechurch  of  London,  from  a  paint- 


THE  SWORDS  OF  CERRO  GORDO. 


174  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

ing  by  P.  F.  Rothermel.  It  contains  a  group  of  twenty- 
eight  Senators,  witn  Vice-President  Fillmore  in  the  chair 
and  Henry  Clay  addressing  the  Senate.  Webster,  Sew- 
ard,  Calhoun,  Benton,  Houston,  Douglas,  Chase  and  the 
rest  seem  all  attention.  It  is  the  greatest  debate  in 
a  score  of  years.  Shields  participated  in  it.  He  made 
greater  sacrifices  for  the  honor  of  the  nation  than  any 
one  present.  Words  alone  were  all  nine-tenths  of  those 
present  had  ever  offered  in  their  country's  behalf,  while 
he,  on  many  a  hard-fought  field  in  the  front  rank,  on 
danger  line  had  offered  his  life  for  the  land  of  his  adoption. 
He  bore  upon  his  body  the  scars  of  three  \vounds,  one 
almost  a  mortal  one,  received  at  Cerro  Gordo,  and  yet  for 
some  reason  his  noble  face  is  omitted  from  this  group  of 
America's  most  illustrious  citizens.  I  pause  to  ask  wThy. 
Perhaps  the  answer  is  "that  the  wheels  of  justice  roll 
slowrly  over  golden  sands." 

The  matter  engraved  on  the  scabbard  of  the  sword  presented  by 
the  State  of  Illinois  is  as  follows: 

"Presented  by  the  State  of  Illinois  to  General  James  Shields  for 
gallant  services  at  Vera  Cruz,  Cerro  Gordo,  Contreras,  Clrcrubusco, 
Chapultepec,  and  the  Garita  of  Belen,  City  of  Mexico. 

The  following  appears  on  the  scabbard  of  the  sword  presented 
by  the  State  of  South  Carolina: 

"From  the  State  of  South  Carolina  to  General  Shields,  in  testi 
mony  of  her  admiration  of  his  gallantry  in  the  Mexican  War,  and 
as  a  tribute  of  gratitude  for  his  parental  attention  to  the  Palmetto 
regiment." 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  175 


CHAPTER     XIII. 


Defeat  of  Stonewall  Jackson  Described  in  Leslie's  Pictorial  History  of 
the  War — General  Shields'  Official  Report — Colonel  Kimball's  and 
Tyler's  Reports — Captain  Schriber's  Report — Colonel  Carroll  Driven, 
from  Bridge  by  Jackson. 


THE    BATTLE    OF    WINCHESTER. 
As  Described  in   Frank  Leslie's    Pictorial   History    of  the   Civil   War. 

The  grand  army  of  the  Potomac  had  not  long  taken 
possession  of  Virginian  soil  before  a  portion  of  the  forces, 
those  under  the  command  of  Generals  Banks  and  Shields, 
had  an  opportunity  of  testing  the  chivalry  and  courage  of 
the  rebels.  General  Banks'  division,  as  already  stated,  had 
advanced  as  far  as  Winchester,  and  were  about  to  move 
from  that  place  with  the  view  of  joining  the  main  body  of 
General  McClellan's  army  at  Centerville. 

On  Saturday,  the  23d  of  March,  General  Shields  made 
a  reconnoissance  in  force  to  Strasburg.  The  object  of 
this  movement  was  to  throw  the  enemy  into  a  trap.  Dis 
covering  the  strength  and  position  of  the  rebels,  General 
Shields  retired  hastily,  posted  his  men  about  two  miles 
north  of  Winchester  in  a  few  tents,  as  though  the  force  was 
unable  to  attempt  pursuing  Jackson's  army,  and  then, 
after  the  withdrawal  of  General  Williams'  division,  awaited 
the  effect  of  the  movement  upon  the  enemy.  The  scheme 
was  entirely  successful.  No  sooner  had  General  Jackson 
heard  that  General  Williams'  division  had  made  a  move 
toward  Centerville,  then  he  reversed  his  march,  and  with 
that  dash  and  daring  for  which  he  is  so  notorious,  and 
which  has  earned  for  him  the  sobriquet  of  the  American 
Garibaldi,  he  was  very  soon  in  the  vicinity  of  Winchester. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  177 

In  the  meantime  he  had  been  reinforced,  the  commands 
of  Generals  Longstreet  and  Smith  joining  him.  So  prompt 
and  unexpected  was  the  attack  of  the  rebels  that  it  took 
the  Union  forces  by  surprise,  but  fortunately  everything 
was  ready  for  the  emergency. 

Before  entering  into  a  narrative  of  the  battle,  and  re 
pulse  and  retreat  of  the  rebel  forces,  it  will  be  necessary 
to  prefix  a  brief  topographical  sketch  of  Winchester. 

Winchester,  the  capital  of  Frederick  County,  Vir 
ginia,  was  at  one  time  a  rather  thriving  place.  It  is  lo 
cated  at  a  point  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  northwest  of 
Richmond,  seventy  miles  west-by-north  of  Washington, 
twenty  miles  north  of  the  Manassas  Gap,  and  thirty-two 
miles  from  Harper's  Ferry  by  railroad.  It  is  distant  from 
Gordonsville  about  eighty  miles,  in  an  air  line,  leading  due 
south,  and  about  one  hundred  miles  by  the  turnpike  road 
via  Front  Royal,  and  one  of  the  gaps  in  the  Blue  Ridge 
mountains.  It  is  eighteen  miles  northeast  of  Strasburg, 
which,  by  rail,  is  sixty-one  miles  from  Manassas  Junc 
tion.  Winchester  is  in  a  beautiful  and  fertile  country, 
which  forms  part  of  the  great  valley  of  Virginia.  With 
the  exception  of  Wheeling,  it  is  the  largest  town  of  the 
state,  west  of  the  Blue  Ridge.  It  is  regularly  planned,  the 
houses  are  built  in  a  compact  and  substantial  manner, 
mostly  of  brick  and  stone,  and  are  supplied  with  excel 
lent  water,  which  is  brought  in  iron  pipes  from  a  spring 
half  a  mile  distant.  Winchester  at  one  time  contained 
twelve  churches,  one  academy,  two  banks  (which  had  an 
aggregate  capital  of  $600,000),  two  newspaper  offices  and 
a  lyceum.  The  place  is  the  terminus  of  the  Winchester 
and  Potomac  Railroad,  by  which  it  was,  previous  to  the 
rebellion,  connected  writh  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  Rail 
road  at  Harper's  Ferry,  and  thence  united  with  all  the 
prominent  cities  and  towns  of  the  great  West  and  the 
ports  of  the  East.  It  has  a  number  of  turnpike  roads,  radi 
ating  from  it  in  every  direction,  which  attract  a  large 
amount  of  trade  and  travel  to  it  as  a  common  center.  The 
population  in  i8=;o  was  about  4,500  souls.  The  county  in 
which  Winchester  is  situated  has  an  area  of  378  square 


178  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

miles.  The  Opequan,  Sleepy  and  Black  creeks,  affluents 
of  the  Potomac,  rise  within  it,  and  flow  in  a  northeasterly 
direction.  The  surface  is  beautifully  diversified  by  moun 
tain  scenery,  and  the  principal  elevation,  the  North  moun 
tains,  extends  along  its  northwestern  border.  The  county, 
before  seized  upon  as  a  point  of  occupation  by  the  rebels, 
was  reputed  to  be  one  of  the  most  wealthy  and  highly 
cultivated  in  the  state.  Blue  limestone  rocks  underlie  a 
portion  of  the  surface.  The  streams  furnish  abundant  mo 
tive  power  for  mills  and  factories.  According  to  the  last 
census  returns  the  population  was  nearly  16,000,  of  whom 
about  2,300  were  slaves.  The  whole  county  has  suffered 
severely  during  the  rebellion,  having,  with  Jefferson 
County,  been  the  scene  of  several  engagements  between 
the  contending  forces. 

PREPARATIONS    PRELIMINARY    TO    THE    BATTLE. 

Early  on  the  morning  of  the  23d  of  March,  intelli 
gence  reached  the  Union  generals  that  General  Jackson's 
army  was  approaching  toward  Winchester  with  reinforce 
ments.  Upon  the  receipt  of  this  information  the  national 
troops  stationed  at  Winchester,  composed  for  the  most 
part  of  General  Shields',  previously  Lander's,  division, 
were  drawn  up  in  line  of  battle  to  oppose  him,  and  in  the 
following  order:  Two  pieces  of  artillery,  Parrott  rifled 
guns,  were  stationed  on  a  small  piece  of  rising  ground,  on 
the  Strasburg  turnpike,  about  three-quarters  of  a  mile 
north  of  the  village  of  Kernstowai.  These  pieces  were  in 
tended  to  command  the  road  and  prevent  the  approach  of 
the  enemy  toward  Winchester  through  that  channel.  Two 
other  pieces  were  posted  in  the  fields  on  the  right  and  left 
of  the  road,  in  a  line  with  the  others,  and  pointed  so  as 
to  command  the  entire  country  on  either  side  of  the  road. 
Six  pieces  in  all  were  at  this  point.  Supporting  this  bat 
tery  and  forming  the  center  of  the  line  of  battle,  were 
drawn  up  the  Eighty-fourth  Pennsylvania,  Fifth  Ohio, 
Sixty-seventh  Ohio,,  Thirteenth  and  Fourteenth  Indiana; 
Tyler's  brigade  nested  in  the  fields  and  on  some  hilly 
ground  to  the  west  of  the  turnpike  constituted  the  right 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  17U 

flank,  and  Sullivan's  command  the  left.     Thus  formed,  the 
Union  army  awaited  the  attack  of  General  Jackson. 

THE    ENEMY'S    POSITION. 

Shortly  after  the  rebels  made  their  appearance  a  body 
of  their  infantry  were  observed  in  some  woods  a  few  hun 
dred  yards  distant,  and  opposite  the  Union  left  flank,  an 
open  field  intervening  between  the  contestants.  To  the 
rear  of  the  enemy's  infantry,  at  this  point,  some  guns  were 
stationed,  so  as  to  bear  on  the  Union  forces,  over  the 
heads  of  the  rebel  infantry.  The  Eighth  Ohio  were  or 
dered  to  deploy  as  skirmishers  and  dislodge  them,  which 
they  did  after  a  short  but  effective  contest.  This  at  once 
changed  the  whole  order  of  the  battle.  On  an  eminence 
some  distance  back,  on  the  west  of  the  turnpike,  and  nearly 
opposite  the  Union  right  flank,  four  or  five  pieces  of  artillery 
were  brought  into  position  by  the  rebels.  Damn's  battery 
being  opposed  to  them  from  a  less  commanding  eminence 
further  north.  A  body  of  rebel  infantry  were  observed 
making  for  a  certain  point  on  the  crest  of  a  hill,  a  short 
distance  from  where  the  rebel  guns  were  in  position.  This 
movement  at  once  revealed  the  strategy  of  Jackson. 

The  body  of  men  sent  to  occupy  this  point  were  in 
full  view  of  the  general  commanding  the  Union  forces,  and 
the  left  flank,  which  at  the  opening  of  the  engagement 
constituted  the  center,  were  sent  against  them.  It  turned 
out,  however,  that  the  troops  sent  to  that  point  by  Jackson 
were  intended  as  a  decoy,  for  he  had  previously  dispatched 
thither  a  very  heavy  force  of  infantry,  around  a  large  piece 
of  woods,  and  not  seen  or  known  to  be  there  by  the  Union 
soldiers.  It  was  owing  to  this  circumstance  that  the  bat 
tle  raged  with  terrible  fury  at  that  particular  spot,  most  of 
the  carnage  occurring  there.  Facing  the  north,  and  con 
fronting  Tyler's  brigade,  a  stone  wall  extended  for  some 
distance,  and  behind  it  swarmed  the  rebel  infantry.  To 
the  rear  of  that  was  a  hollow  piece  of  ground  of  some  ex 
tent,  within  which,  and  facing  the  east,  the  enemy  lay 
in  large  numbers,  in  a  naturally  fortified  position,  behind 
rocks,  trees,  etc.,  and  entirely  hid  from  the  approach  of 


180  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

the  Union  left  flank,  and  waiting  to  pour  a  deadly  volley  of 
musketry  into  it  at  the  given  signal.  Toward  this  point  the 
Eighty-fourth  Pennsylvania,  Fifth  Ohio  and  Sixty-seventh 
Ohio,  supported  by  the  Thirteenth  and  Fourteenth  Indi 
ana,  advanced  by  a  flank  movement  over  fields  and  under 
a  galling  fire  of  shot  and  shell  from  the  battery  on  the  hill 
to  'their  left,  the  fire  of  which  was  replied  to  by  Daunt  s 
battery,  placed  as  above  stated. 

COMMENCEMENT    OF     THE    EIGHT. 

About  a  quarter  past  2,  on  the  afternoon  of  March  23, 
the  advanced  pickets  of  the  Union  army  discovered  the 
rebel  cavalry  on  the  Strasburg  road.  They  were  under 
the  command  of  Colonel  Ashby,  reconnoitering  the  w^oods 
on  both  sides  of  the  turnpike,  and  steadily  advancing.  The 
Union  pickets  fell  back,  and  the  rebel  force  gave  chase. 
Coming  up  with  the  small  force  of  the  Fourteenth  Indiana, 
Ashby  cried  out  at  the  top  of  his  voice :  "There  they  are, 
boys,  now  give  them  hell!"  Steadily  did  the  cavalry  ad 
vance  as  the  Union  soldiers  wheeled  to  aim  and  fire.  That 
fire  sent  many  of  them  reeling  out  of  their  saddles,  and 
threw  the  others  into  confusion,  so  that  before  they  could 
be  again  rallied  for  a  charge,  the  Union  infantry  had  re 
tired  out  of  harm's  way  without  having  lost  a  single  man. 
At  this  juncture  the  skirmishing  progressed  on  other  points 
along  the  advanced  Union  line,  and  pickets  were  every 
where  rallying  upon  their  reserves.  General  Shields,  hear 
ing  of  the  advance  of  the  rebel  cavalry,  supposed  it  to  be 
a  feint  of  Ashby  alone,  for  the  purpose  of  watching  the 
Union  movements.  As  they  were  approaching  so  boldly 
and  so  closely,  however,  he  ordered  four  advanced  compa 
nies  of  infantry,  engaged  in  protecting  the  supply  train, 
to  press  forward  to  the  support  of  the  more  advanced 
pickets  and  try  to  hold  the  rebels  in  check  until  he  could 
move  over  the  division.  These  four  companies  consisted 
of  one  from  the  First  Maryland,  one  from  the  Twenty- 
eighth  Pennsylvania,  one  from  the  Forty-sixth  Pennsyl 
vania  and  one  from  the  Twenty-eighth  New  York.  Their 
regiments  had  already  marched  toward  Centerville  under 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


181 


GEN.     SHIELDS    AT    WINCHESTER. 


182  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

General  Williams.  A  battery  of  artillery  was  also  ordered 
forward,  and  General  Shields,  after  ordering  out  the  divi 
sion,  moved  to  the  front,  accompanied  by  his  staff.  While 
directing  the  fire  of  artillery,  and  the  defense  generally, 
a  shell  from  the  rebel  battery  of  four  guns,  which  at  this 
time  was  playing  upon  the  Unionists,  burst  near  him,  and 
a  splinter  from  it  struck  him  just  above  the  elbow,  frac 
turing  the  bone  and  creating  a  painful  wound.  His  adju 
tant-general,  Major  Armstrong,  who  was  standing  near, 
remarked:  "General,  you  are  wounded  in  the  arm." 
"Yes,"  replied  Shields,  "but  say  nothing  about  it."  He 
then  gave  fresh  orders  to  the  artillery,  and  continued  on 
the  field  till  he  satisfied  himself  that  all  was  right. 

It  was  well  toward  night  before  the  division  of  Gen 
eral  Shields  began  to  arrive  on  the  field,  and  the  rebels, 
perceiving  this,  did  push  their  advance,  but  halted  about 
three  miles  from  Winchester  for  the  night,  lighted  their 
fires  and  bivouacked,  while  the  Union  army  lay  between 
them  and  the  town  of  Winchester.  The  universal  opinion 
was  that  there  would  be  a  general  engagement  on  the 
following  day,  Sunday,  March  24.  Both  sides  were  in  a 
state  of  painful  suspense  on  the  night  of  the  2jd.  It  was 
the  wisest  policy  for  the  Union  forces  to  stave  off  a  battle, 
in  consequence  of  the  preponderating  forces  of  the  enemy, 
so  that  reinforcements  could  arrive  from  the  division  of 
General  Williams,  the  rear  guard  of  which  had,  by  this 
time  advanced  ten  miles  toward  the  Shenandoah.  As  soon 
as  the  dawn  of  Sunday  had  set  in  the  reason  of  the  enemy's 
halt  was  fully  explained,  as  it  was  found  that  reinforce 
ments  of  five  regiments  of  infantry  and  two  batteries  of 
artillery  had  joined  General  Jackson,  and  were  under  the 
command  of  General  Garnett.  Receiving  this  important 
aid,  Jackson  lost  no  time  in  preparing  for 

THE    SECOND    DAY'S    FIGHT. 

With  the  reinforcements  named  above  the  rebel  force 
consisted  of  sixteen  regiments  of  infantry,  numbering 
11,000  men;  five  batteries  of  artillery,  with  a  total  of 
twenty-eight  field  pieces,  and  three  battalions  of  horse, 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  183 

under  Ashby  and  Stuart.  Their  line  of  battle  extended 
about  a  mile  on  the  right  of  the  village  of  Kernstown,  and 
a  mile  and  three-quarters  on  the  left  of  it,  the  village  itself 
lying  on  the  road  between  the  rebel  right  and  center. 
There  was  a  mud  road  branching  from  the  turnpike,  a  mile 
or  so,  from  Winchester,  to  the  right  of  the  latter,  on  the 
way  to  Strasb-urg.  This  road  passed  through  the  rebel 
center,  and  was  one  of  their  points  of  defense  on  the  right 
of  the  Union  line.  The  most  advanced  regiment  of  the 
latter  was  the  Eighth  Ohio,  which  formed  part  of  General 
Tyler's  brigade,  and  on  it  the  rebels  made  a  furious  on 
slaught  early  in  the  morning,  with  the  evident  intention 
of  turning  the  ri.eht  flank  of  the  Union  forces.  They  were 
frustrated  in  this  design,  as  the  regiment  met  them  in 
fierce  and  deadly  struggle,  each  time  repulsing  them  with 
severe  loss.  Five  several  times  did  the  rebels  emerge  from 
the  woods  and  from  behind  their  stone  parapet,  with  vastly 
superior  numbers,  and  try  vainly  to  accomplish  their  much- 
desired  object.  The  Union  left  wing,  consisting  of  the 
Thirteenth  Indiana,  Seventh  Ohio  and  a  battery  of  the 
Fourth  Regular  Artillery,  under  Captain  Jenks,  had  a 
feint  made  on  it,  the  real  attack  of  the  rebels  being  directed 
against  the  Union  right  wing.  The  feint  on  the  left  was  a 
heavy  fire  of  artillery  posted  on  both  sides  of  the  village 
and  the  turnpike.  It,  however,  did  but  trifling  damage. 
The  Union  battery  replied  and  silenced  that  of  the  enemy, 
although  the  firing  was  well  maintained  and  directed  on 
both  sides  for  a  long  time.  The  Union  center  consisted 
of  the  Fourteenth  Indiana,  the  Eighth  and  Sixty-seventh 
Ohio  and  the  Eighty-fourth  Pennsylvania,  and  two  artil 
lery  batteries  belonging  to  the  First  Ohio  Artillery,  and 
the  cavalry,  consisting  of  the  First  Michigan  and  First 
Ohio,  were  drawn  up  in  the  rear.  The  whole  of  the  Union 
cavalry  did  not  exceed  eight  hundred  men,  but  neither  did 
it,  nor  that  belonging  to  the  enemy,  take  any  part  in  the 
action.  The  Union  right  wing  consisted  of  the  Fifth  and 
Eighth  Ohio  regiments  and  a  battery  of  the  First  Virginia 
regiment,  whilst  the  reserve  was  made  up  of  the  Twelfth 
Indiana,  the  Thirty-ninth  Illinois  and  a  squadron  of  the 


184      .f  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

Michigan  cavalry.  As  General  Shields  had  been  severely 
wounded  on  the  previous  afternoon,  he  was  unable  to  com 
mand  in  person,  so  that  the  conduct  of  the  engagement 
rested  upon  Acting  Brigadier  Kimball,  who  led  the  Union 
center,  while  the  right  was  commanded  by  Acting  Briga 
dier  Tyler,  and  Colonel  Sullivan  directed  the  operations 
on  the  left.  The  battle  raged  with  great  fury  from  n 
a.  m.  till  nearly  2  p.  m.,  when  General  Shields,  who  re 
ceived  accounts  of  the  progress  of  the  fight  on  his  couch, 
ordered  the  right,  where  the  contest  raged  the  hottest,  to 
charge  upon  the  rebels.  Instantly  and  terrifically  was  that 
charge  made,  notwithstanding  the  desperate  efforts  of  the 
rebels  to  repel  it  at  every  point.  f  Previously  to  this  time 
the  Union  line  of  battle  had  been  somewhat  changed.  The 
Eighty-fourth  Pennsylvania  reinforced  the  right,  and  also 
a  battery  of  artillery.  The  whole  Union  force  engaged  at 
this  time  was  about  6,000,  while  that  of  the  rebels  must 
have  been  fully  8,000.  The  rebels  also  changed  their  line 
of  battle  and  extended  both  their  wings  so  as  to  present 
a  concave  front  to  the  Union  army.  They  had  also  rein 
forced  their  left  wing,  and  the  charge  to  be  made  by  the 
Union  right  was  all  important  in  its  consequences,  as  on  it, 
at  3  o'ciock,  depended  the  fate  of  the  battle.  The  charge 
was  led  by  Acting  Brigadier  Tyler,  with  sword  in  hand. 
The  rebels  fired  from  the  woods  with  artillery  and  small 
arms,  while  the  Union  soldiers  advanced  against  this  deadly 
hailstorm  of  bullets,  returning  few  shots  and  reserving  their 
fire.  Except  in  rare  instances  the  two  armies,  up  to  this 
time,  had  not  been  nearer  to  each  other  than  300  yards. 
The  wood  was  soon  cleared  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet,  the 
Union  soldiers  discharging  their  pieces  at  twenty,  and  some 
of  them  even  five,  yards'  distance  from  the  rebels,  and  after 
ward  dashing  at  them  with  the  bayonet. 

It  is  admitted  that  the  rebels  fought  well.  They  con 
tested  the  ground  foot  by  foot,  and  marked  every  yard 
of  it  with  blood.  Retiring  behind  the  stone  wall  spoken  of, 
the  Union  men  leaped  over  it  after  them  and  drove  them 
back  in  the  greatest  confusion  and  with  fearful  slaughter 
upon  their  center.  The  panic  became  infectious,  and  Kim- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  185 

ball  ordered  a  charge  along  the  whole  line.  For  a  short 
time  the  lighting  was  most  desperate  and  bloody.  The 
roar  of  the  cannon  was,  after  a  time,  hushed,  but  the  rattle 
of  musketry  was  more  boisterous  than  ever.  The  Union 
army  had  evidently  gained  the  day.  The  rebels  began  to 
fly.  Two  of  their  guns  and  four  caissons  were  captured, 
and  although  many  of  them  turned  and  fired  again  and 
again  at  the  Union  soldiers  pursuing  them,  many  more 
threw  away  their  muskets  and  bayonets  for  the  purpose 
of  effecting  a  speedier  escape.  Darkness  and  the  extreme 
fatigue  of  the  Union  troops  saved  the  rebels  for  the  time, 
as  the  pursuit  was  given  up  and  the  victors  retired  about 
two  miles  and  bivouacked  until  the  morning  of  the  25th 
of  March.  The  loss  of  the  Union  forces  was  put  down  at 
103  killed,  441  wounded  and  24  missing.  The  rebel  loss 
was  considerably  more.  The  retreat  of  Jackson's  army 
wras  commenced  in  good  order.  At  the  time  of  the  engage 
ment  General  Banks,  who  was  on  his  way  to  Washington, 
had  halted  at  Harper's  Ferry,  and  hearing  of  the  fight  he 
at  once  ordered  back  General  Williams'  division,  then  en 
route  to  join  General  McClellan  at  Centerville.  General 
Banks  also  returned  as  the  fight  was  about  ending,  and, 
taking  command  of  the  troops  in  person,  he  followed  up 
the  pursuit  with  about  ten  thousand  men.  He  pressed 
upon  the  rebels  severely  until  beyond  Middleburg,  cutting 
off  many  stragglers.  Banks'  object  was  to  capture  Jack 
son's  entire  force  if  possible,  but  the  crafty  rebel  com 
mander  balked  that  intention. 

Such  was  the  character  and  such  the  results  of  the 
opening  battle  of  the  Virginia  campaign.  That  it  was  not 
more  successful  was  not  the  fault  of  the  Union  soldiers, 
who  nobly  fought  the  battle  and  refused  to  know  any  rest 
until  they  had  scattered  the  rebels  in  terror  and  dismay 
in  all  directions. 

REBEL     ACCOUNTS. 

The  Richmond  Whig  of  the  Qth  of  April,  1862,  con 
tains  what  it  terms,  "An  account  of  General  Jackson's 
brilliant  encounter  with  the  enemy  in  the  lower  valley  of 


186  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

Virginia."  The  writer  dates  from  "Staunton,  March  31, 
1862,"  and  proceeds  as  follows:  "I  send  you  such  par 
ticulars  as  I  have  been  able  to  gather  of  the  bloody  battle 
near  Winchester.  It  is  impossible  to  get  accurate  accounts 
of  the  details  of  this  conflict,  as  those  engaged  can  only 
speak  of  what  occurred  in  the  range  of  their  observation, 
and -they  \vere  kept  too  busy  to  look  much  around  them. 
From  all  accounts  it  was  the  most  desperate  contest  of  the 
war.  Many  who  participated  in  both  engagements  think 
that  Manassas  was  child's  play  compared  to  Winchester, 
and  from  the  fact  that  the  loss  on  our  side  was  twenty  per 
cent,  of  the  whole  number  engaged,  and  that  of  the  enemy 
still  greater."  The  writer  then  proceeds:  "General  Jack 
son's  official  report  will  give  the  only  trustworthy  account 
of  the  battle  as  a  whole,  but  we  have  gathered  facts  from 
those  engaged,  and  civilians  who  left  Winchester  since  the 
fight,  which  will  shed  some  light  on  the  subject.  I  learn 
from  a  reliable  source  that  the  number  of  infantry  engaged 
on  our  side  was  2,200.  In  addition  to  these  were  the 
Rockingham  and  Augusta  batteries,  and  probably  some 
others,  making  an  aggregate  force  of  about  2,500.  The 
force  of  the  enemy  was  about  12,000.  For  many  hours 
our  little  band  of  heroes  maintained  their  stand  against  the 
overwhelming  hosts  of  the  enemy,  and  finally  withdrew  in 
good  order,  when  increasing  numbers  of  the  enemy  threat 
ened  to  surround  them.  The  first  rumor  was  that  Jackson 
had  been  caught  in  a  trap,  and  dreadfully  worsted.  But 
this  is  altogether  a  mistake.  Jackson  was  duly  apprised 
of  the  movements  of  the  enemy,  and  acted  with  his  eyes 
wide  open  in  the  whole  affair.  His  object  was  to  give  the 
enemy  a  foretaste  of  what  they  had  to  expect  in  the  valley, 
and  if  they  were  satisfied  with  the  result,  I  am  sure  'Old 
Stonewall'  is.  I  learn  from  a  gentleman  who  left  Win 
chester  on  Tuesday,  that  Mr.  Philip  Williams  and  other 
gentlemen  applied  to  the  Union  commander  to  bury  our 
dead.  This  was  granted,  and  the  pious  duty  was  per 
formed  in  a  suitable  manner.  The  number  of  our  dead  was 
83,  which  has  been  increased  by  subsequent  deaths  to 
about  90.  Our  whole  loss  in  killed,  wounded  and  prison- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  187 

ers  was  about  465.  Of  these  about  200  were  wounded. 
Most  of  the  wounded  have  been  brought  to  Staunton, 
where  they  are  comfortably  cared  for  in  the  hospital,  which 
has  been  established  in  the  spacious  and  commodious 
buildings  of  the  Institution  for  the  Deaf,  Dumb  and  Blind. 
I  am  happy  to  say  that  much  the  larger  proportion  of  the 
wounds  are  slight,  involving  no  permanent  disability. 
The  wounded  are  cheerful  and  anxious  to  be  sufficiently 
restored  to  return  to  their  respective  commands.  The 
most  deadly  strife  occurred  near  the  boundary  of  two 
fields  which  were  separated  by  a  stone  wall.  One  of  our 
regiments  was  in  one  field  and  six  Yankee  regiments  in 
the  other.  At  first  they  fired  across  .the  wall,  but  after 
a  while  each  party  advanced  in  a  run,  to  get  the  benefit 
of  the  shelter  of  the  wall.  Our  men  reached  it  first,  and 
the  Yankees  were  then  about  forty  yards  distant.  Our 
men  immediately  dropped  on  their  knees,  and,  taking  de 
liberate  aim,  fired  deadly  volleys  into  the  advancing  lines 
of  the  enemy.  The  effect  was  terrific,  and  it  is  said  that 
an  Ohio  and  Pennsylvania  regiment,  which  were  in  ad 
vance,  were  almost  annihilated.  It  is  said  that  after  this 
fire  not  more  than  twenty  men  of  one  of  these  regiments 
were  left  standing.  We  lost  two  guns  in  the  battle — one 
from  the  Rockbridge  and  one  from  the  Augusta  battery. 
The  Rockbridge  gun  was  struck  by  a  cannon-ball  and  dis 
abled.  The  loss  of  the  other  one  was  caused  by  the  killing 
of  one  of  the  horses,  which  frightened  the  others  and  caused 
them  to  turn  suddenly  and  capsize  the  carriage.  The 
enemy  were  close  upon  us  and  left  no  time  to  replace  it. 
Our  men,  however,  cut  out  and  secured  all  the  horses  but 
one,  and  he  was  cut  out  by  the  enemy  and  escaped  from 
them  and  came  galloping  to  our  camp.  It  would  seem  as 
if  the  horses  were  infected  with  the  spirit  of  rebellion  and 
hatred  to  the  Yankees." 

GENERAL    SHIELDS'   REPORT. 

Headquarters  Shields'  Division, 

Winchester,  Va.,  March  29,  1862. 
To  MAJOR-GENERAL  BANKS: 

Sir: — I  have  the  honor  to  report  that  during  my  re- 
connoissance  of  the  I3th  and  iQth  instant,  in  the  direction 


188  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

of  Mount  Jackson,  1  ascertained  that  the  enemy  under 
Jackson  was  strongly  posted  near  that  place,  and  in  direct 
communication  with  a  force  at  Luray  and  another  at 
Washington.  It  became  important,  therefore,  to  draw  him 
from  his  position  and  supporting  force,  if  possible.  To 
endeavor  to  effect  this  I  fell  back  to  Winchester  on  the 
2Oth,  giving  the  movement  all  the  appearance  of  a  retreat. 
The'  last  brigade  of  the  first  division  of  Bank's  corps 
d'armee,  General  Williams  commanding,  took  its  depart 
ure  for  Centerville  by  way  of  Berryville  on  the  morning 
of  the  22d,  leaving  only  Shields'  division  and  the  Michi 
gan  cavalry  in  Winchester.  Ashby's  cavalry,  observing 
this  movement  from  a  distance,  came  to  the  conclusion 
that  Winchester  was  being  evacuated,  and  signalized  Jack 
son  to  that  effect.  We  saw  their  signal  fires  and  divined 
their  import.  On  the  22d,  about  5  o'clock  p.  m.,  they 
attacked  and  drove  in  our  pickets.  By  order  of  General 
Banks,  I  put  my  command  under  arms  and  pushed  for 
ward  one  brigade  and  two  batteries  of  artillery  to  drive 
back  the  enemy,  but,  to  keep  him  deceived  as  to  our 
strength,  only  let  him  see  two  regiments  of  infantry,  a 
small  body  of  cavalry  and  part  of  the  artillery.  While 
directing  one  of  our  batteries  to  its  position  I  was  struck 
by  the  fragment  of  a  shell,  which  fractured  my  arm  above 
the  elbow,  bruised  my  shoulder  and  injured  my  side.  The 
enemy  being  driven  from  his  position,  we  withdrew  to 
Winchester.  The  injury  I  had  received  completely  pros 
trated  me,  but  was  not  such  as  to  prevent  me  from  making 
the  required  dispositions  for  the  ensuing  day.  Under 
cover  of  the  night  I  pushed  forward  Kimball's  brigade 
nearly  three  miles  on  the  Strasburg  road.  Daum's  artil 
lery  was  posted  in  strong  position  to  support  his  brigade 
if  attacked.  Sullivan's  brigade  was  posted  in  the  rear  of 
Kimball's,  and  within  supporting  distance  of  it,  covering 
all  the  approaches  to  the  town  by  Cedar  Creek,  Front 
Royal,  Berryville  and  Romney  roads.  This  brigade  and 
Brodhead's  cavalry  were  held  in  reserve,  so  as  to  support 
our  force  in  front  at  any  point  where  it  might  be  attacked. 
These  dispositions  being  made,  I  rested  for  the  night, 
knowing  that  all  the  approaches  by  which  the  enemy 
might  penetrate  to  this  place  were  effectually  guarded. 

I  deem  it  necessary  in  this  place  to  give  a  brief  descrip 
tion  of  these  approaches,  as  well  as  of  the  field  which  next 
day  became  the  scene  of  one  of  the  bloodiest  battles  of  the 
war.  Winchester  is  approached  from  the  south  by  three 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  189 

principal  roads — the  Cedar  Creek  road  on  the  west,  the 
Valley  Turnpike  road,  leading  to  Strasburg,  in  the  center, 
and  the  Front  Royal  road  on  the  east.  There  is  a  little 
village  called  Kernstown  on  the  Valley  road,  about  three 
and  a  half  miles  from  Winchester.  On  the  west  side  of  this 
road  is  a  ridge  of  ground  which  commands  the  approach 
by  the  turnpike,  and  a  part  of  the  surrounding  country. 
This  ridge  was  the  key  point  of  our  position.  Here  Colonel 
Kimball,  the  senior  officer  in  command  of  the  field,  took 
his  station.  Along  this  ridge  Lieutenant-Colonel  Daum, 
chief  of  artillery,  posted  three  of  his  batteries,  keeping 
one  of  his  batteries  in  reserve  some  distance  in  the  rear. 
Part  of  our  infantry  was  first  placed  in  position  in  the  rear 
and  within  supporting  distance  of  these  batteries,  well 
sheltered  in  the  windings  and  sinuosities  of  the  ridge.  The 
main  body  of  the  enemy  on  the  ridge  was  posted  in  order 
of  battle  about  half  a  mile  beyond  Kernstown,  his  line 
extending  from  the  Cedar  Creek  road  to  a  little*  ravine, 
near  the  Front  Royal  road,  a  distance  of  about  two  miles. 
This  ground  has  been  so  skillfully  selected  that,  while  it 
afforded  facilities  for  maneuvering,  it  was  completely 
masked  by  high  and  wooded  ground  in  front.  These 
woods  he  filled  with  skirmishers,  supported  by  a  battery 
on  each  flank,  and  so  adroitly  had  this  movement  been  con 
ducted,  and  so  skillfully  had  he  concealed  himself,  that  at 
8  o'clock  a.  m.,  on  the  23d,  nothing  was  visible  but  the 
same  force  under  Ashby  which  had  been  repulsed  the  pre 
vious  evening.  Not  being  able  to  reconnoiter  the  front  in 
person,  I  dispatched  an  experienced  officer,  Colonel  John 
T.  Mason  of  the  Fourth  Ohio  Volunteers,  about  9  o'clock 
a.  m.,  to  perform  that  duty,  and  to  report  to  me  as 
promptly  as  possible  every  circumstance  that  might  indi 
cate  the  presence  of  the  enemy.  About  an  hour  after 
Colonel  Mason  returned  and  reported  to  me  that  he  had 
carefully  reconnoitered  the  country  in  front  and  on  both 
flanks,  and  had  found  no  indications  of  any  hostile  force 
except  that  of  Ashby's. 

I  communicated  this  information  to  Major-General 
Banks,  who  was  then  with  me,  and  after  consulting  to 
gether  we  both  concluded  that  Jackson  could  not  be 
tempted  to  hazard  himself  so  far  away  from  his  main  sup 
port.  Having  both  come  to  this  conclusion.  General  Banks 
took  his  departure  for  Washington,  being  already  under 
orders  to  that  effect.  The  officers  of  his  staff,  however, 
remained  behind,  intending  to  leave  for  Centerville  in  the 


190  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

afternoon.  Although  I  began  to  conclude  that  Jackson 
was  nowhere  in  the  vicinity,  knowing  the  crafty  enemy  we 
have  to  deal  with,  I  took  care  not  to  omit  a  single  pre 
caution.  Between  n  and  12  o'clock  a.  m.  a  message  from 
Colonel  Kimball  informed  me  that  another  battery  on  the 
enemy's  right  had  opened  on  our  position,  and  that  there 
were  some  indications  of  a  considerable  force  of  infantry  in 
the 'woods  in  that  quarter.  On  receiving  this  information 
I  pushed  forward  Sullivan's  brigade,  which  was  placed, 
by  order  of  Colonel  Kimball,  in  a  position  to  oppose  the 
advance  of  the  enemy's  right  wing.  The  action  opened 
with  a  fire  of  artillery  on  both  sides,  but  at  too  great  a 
distance  to  be  very  effective.  The  initiative  was  taken 
by  the  enemy.  He  pushed  forward  a  few  more  guns  to  his 
right,  supported  by  a  considerable  force  of  infantry  and 
cavalry,  with  the  apparent  intention  of  enfilading  our  posi 
tion  and  turning  our  left  flank.  An  active  body  of  skir 
mishers  were  admirably  supported  by  four  pieces  of  ar 
tillery  under  Captain  Jenks  and  Sullivan's  gallant  brigade. 
This  united  force  repulsed  the  enemy  at  all  points,  and 
gave  him  such  a  check  that  no  further  demonstration  was 
made  upon  that  flank  during  the  remainder  of  the  day. 
The  attempt  against  our  left  flank  having  thus  failed,  the 
enemy  withdrew  the  greater  part  of  his  force  to  the  other 
side,  and  formed  it  into  a  reserve  to  support  his  left  flank 
in  a  forward  movement.  He  then  added  his  original 
reserve  and  two  batteries  to  his  main  body,  and  then,  ad 
vancing  with  this  combined  column,  under  shelter  of  the 
bridge  on  his  left,  on  which  other  batteries  had  been  pre 
viously  posted,  seemed  evidently  determined  to  turn  our 
right  flank  or  overthrow  it.  Our  batteries  on  the  op 
posite  ridge,  though  admirably  managed  by  their  experi 
enced  chief,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Daum,  were  soon  found 
insufficient  to  check,  or  even  retard,  the  advance  of  such 
a  formidable  body.  At  this  stage  of  the  combat  a  mes 
senger  arrived  from  Colonel  Kimball,  informing  me  of 
the  state  of  the  field,  and  repeating  direction  as  to  the 
employment  of  the  infantry.  I  saw  there  was  not  a  mo 
ment  to  lose,  and  gave  positive  orders  that  all  the  dispos 
able  infantry  should  be  immediately  thrown  forward  on 
our  right  to  carry  the  enemy's  batteries,  and  to  assail  and 
turn  his  left  flank,  and  hurl  it  back  on  the  center.  Colonel 
Kimball  carried  out  these  orders  with  promptitude  and 
ability.  He  entrusted  this  movement  to  Tyler's  splendid 
brigade,  which,  under  its  fearless  leader.  Colonel  Tyler, 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  191 

marched  forward  with  alacrity  and  enthusiastic  joy  to  the 
performance  of  the  most  perilous  duty  of  the  day.  The 
enemy's  skirmishers  were  driven  before  it  and  fell  back 
upon  the  main  body,  strongly  posted  behind  a  high  and 
solid  stone  wall,  situated  on  an  elevated  ground.  Here 
the  struggle  became  desperate,  and  for  a  short  time  doubt 
ful,  but  Tyler's  brigade  being  soon  joined  on  the  left  by 
the  Fifth  Ohio,  Thirteenth  Indiana  and  Sixty-second  Ohio 
of  Sullivan's  brigade,  and  the  Fourteenth  Indiana,  Eighty- 
fourth  Pennsylvania,  seven  companies  of  the  Sixty-seventh 
Ohio  and  three  companies  of  the  Eighth  Ohio  of  Kim- 
ball's  brigade,  this  united  force  dashed  upon  the  enemy 
with  a  cheer  and  yell  that  rose  high  above  the  roar  of 
battle,  and  though  the  rebels  fought  desperately,  as  their 
piles  of  dead  attest,  they  were  forced  back  through  the 
woods  by  a  fire  as  destructive  as  ever  fell  on  a  retreating 
foe.  Jackson,  with  his  supposed  invincible  Stonewall  Bri 
gade  and  the  accompanying  brigades,  much  to  their  mor 
tification  and  discomfiture,  were  compelled  to  fall  back 
in  disorder  upon  their  reserve.  Here  they  took  up  a  new 
position  for  a  final  stand,  and  made  an  attempt  for  a  few 
minutes  to  retrieve  the  fortunes  of  the  day,  but  again 
rained  down  upon  them  the  same  close  and  destructive 
fire.  Again  cheer  upon  cheer  rang  in  their  ears.  A  few 
minutes  only  did  they  stand  up  against  it,  when  they  turned 
dismayed  and  fled  in  disorder,  leaving  us  in  possession 
of  the  field,  the  killed  and  wounded,  300  prisoners,  2  guns, 
4  caissons  and  a  1,000  stand  of  small  arms.  Night  alone 
saved  him  from  total  destruction.  The  enemy  retreated 
above  five  miles,  and,  judging  from  his  camp  fires,  took  up 
a  new  position  for  the  night.  Our  troops,  wearied  and 
exhausted  with  the  fatigues  of  the  day,  threw  themselves 
down  to  rest  on  the  field. 

Though  the  battle  had  been  won,  still  I  could  not  have 
believed  that  Jackson  would  have  hazarded  a  decisive  en 
gagement  at  such  a  distance  from  the  main  body  without 
expecting  reinforcements.  So,  to  be  prepared  for  such 
a  contingency,  I  set  to  work  during  the  night  to  bring 
together  all  the  troops  within  my  reach.  I  sent  an  express 
after  Williams'  division,  requesting  the  rear  brigade,  about 
twenty  miles  distant,  to  march  .all  night  and  join  me  in 
the  morning.  I  swept  the  posts  and  route  in  my  rear  of 
almost  all  their  guards,  hurrying  them  forward  by  forced 
marches,  to  be  with  me  at  daylight.  I  gave  positive  or 
ders  also  to  the  forces  in  the  field  to  open  fire  on  the  enemy 


192  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

as  soon  as  the  light  of  day  would  enable  them  to  point  their 
guns,  and  to  pursue  him  without  respite,  and  compel  him 
to  abandon  his  guns  and  baggage  or  cut  him  to  pieces. 
These  orders  were  implicitly  obeyed  as  far  as  possible.  It 
now  appears  that  I  had  rightly  divined  the  intentions  of 
our  crafty  antagonist.  On  the  morning  of  the  236.  a  rein 
forcement  from  Luray  of  5,000  reached  Front  Royal,  on 
their  way  to  join  Jackson.  This  reinforcement  was  being 
followed  by  another  body  of  10,000  from  Sperryville,  but 
recent  rains  having  rendered  the  Shenandoah  River  im 
passable,  they  found  themselves  compelled  to  fall  back 
without  being  able  to  effect  the  proposed  junction.  At 
daylight  on  the  morning  of  the  24th  our  artillery  again 
opened  on  the  enemy.  He  entered  upon  his  retreat  in 
very  good  order,  considering  what  he  had  suffered.  Gen 
eral  Banks,  hearing  of  our  engagement  on  his  way  to  Wash 
ington,  halted  at  Harper's  Ferry,  and  with  remarkable 
promptitude  and  sagacity  ordered  back  Williams'  whole 
division,  so  that  my  express  found  the  rear  brigade  already 
en  route  to  join  us.  The  general  himself  returned  here 
forthwith,  and,  after  making  me  a  hasty  visit,  assumed 
command  of  the  forces  in  pursuit  of  the  enemy.  The  pur 
suit  was  kept  up  with  vigor,  energy  and  activity  until  they 
reached  Woodstock,  where  the  enemy's  retreat  became 
flight  and  the  pursuit  was  abandoned  because  of  the  utter 
exhaustion  of  our  troops. 

The  killed  and  wounded  in  this  engagement  cannot 
even  yet  be  accurately  ascertained.  Indeed,  my  command 
has  been  so  overworked  that  it  has  had  but  little  time 
to  ascertain  anything.  The  killed,  as  reported,  are  103, 
and  among  them  we  have  to  deplore  the  loss  of  the  brave 
Colonel  Murray  of  the  Eighty-fourth  Pennsylvania  Vol 
unteers,  who  fell  at  the  head  of  his  regiment  while  gal 
lantly  leading  it  in  the  face  of  the  enemy.  The  wounded 
are  441,  many  of  them  slightly,  and  the  missing  are  24. 
The  enemy's  loss  is  more  difficult  to  ascertain  than  our 
own.  Two  hundred  and  seventy-nine  were  found  dead 
on  the  battlefield.  Forty  were  buried  by  the  inhabitants 
of  the  adjacent  village,  and,  by  the  calculation  made  by 
the  number  of  graves  found  on  both  sides  of  the  valley  road 
between  here  a"nd  Strasburg,  their  loss  in  killed  must  have 
been  about  500  and  in  wounded  1,000.  The  proportion 
between  the  killed  and  wounded  of  the  enemy  shows  the 
closeness  and  terrible  destructiveness  of  our  fire — nearly 
half  the  wounds  being  fatal.  The  enemy  admits  a  loss 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  193 

of  between  1,000  and  1,500  killed  and  wounded.  Our 
force  in  infantry,  cavalry  and  artillery  did  not  exceed 
7,000.  That  of  the  enemy  must  have  exceeded  11,000. 
Jackson,  who  commanded  on  the  field,  had,  in  addition  to 
his  own  Stonewall  Brigade,  Smith's,  Garnett's  and  Long- 
street's  brigades.  Generals  Smith  and  Garnett  were  here 
in  person.  The  following  regiments  wrere  known  to  have 
been  present,  and  from  each  of  them  were  made  prisoners 
on  the  field:  The  Second,  Fourth,  Fifth,  Twenty-first, 
Twenty-third,  Twenty-seventh,  Twenty-eighth,  Thirty-' 
third,  Thirty-seventh  and  Forty-second  Virginia;  First 
Regiment  Provisional  Army,  and  an  Irish  battalion.  None 
from  the  reserve  were  made  prisoners.  Their  force  in 
infantry  must  have  been  9,000.  Their  artillery  consisted 
of  36  pieces.  We  had  6,000  infantry  and  a  cavalry  force 
of  750  and  24  pieces  of  artillery. 

I  cannot  conclude  this  report  without  expressing 
thanks  and  gratitude  to  officers  and  soldiers  of  my  com 
mand  for  their  valuable  conduct  on  this  trying  day.  It 
was  worthy  of  the  great  country  whose  national  existence 
they  have  pledged  themselves  to  preserve.  Special  thanks 
are  due  to  Colonel  Kimball,  commanding  First  Brigade 
and  senior  officer  in  the  field.  His  conduct  was  brave, 
judicious  and  efficient.  He  executed  my  orders,  in  every 
instance,  with  vi°'or  and  fidelity,  and  exhibited  wisdom 
and  sagacity  in  the  various  movements  that  were  neces 
sarily  entrusted  to  his  direction.  Colonel  Tyler,  com 
manding  Third  Brigade,  has  won  my  admiration  by  his 
fearless  intrepiditv.  His  brigade  is  worthy  of  such  an 
intrepid  leader.  This  brigade,  and  the  regiments  accom 
panying  it,  achieved  the  decisive  success  of  the  day.  They 
drove  the  forces  of  the  enemy  before  them  on  the  left 
flank,  and  by  hurling  this  flank  back  upon  the  reserve 
consummated  this  glorious  action.  High  praise  is  due 
to  Colonel  Sullivan,  commanding  Second  Brigade,  for 
the  manner  in  which  he  contributed  to  the  first  repulse  of 
the  enemy  in  the  morning.  To  him  and  Colonel  Carroll, 
of  the  Eighth  Ohio  Volunteers,  who  commanded  the 
skirmishers,  is  the  credit  due  of  forcing  back  the  right  wing 
of  the  enemy  and  of  intimidating  and  holding  him  in  check 
on  our  left  during  the  rest  of  the  day.  The  chief  of  artil 
lery,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Daum,  deserves  high  commen 
dation  for  the  skillful  manner  in  which  he  managed  his  bat 
teries  during  the  engagement.  This  skillful,  management 
13 


194  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

prevented  the  enemy  doubtless  from  using  his  formidable 
artillery.  The  cavalry  performed  its  duty  with  spirit  in 
this  engagement,  and,  with  its  gallant  officers,  exhibited 
activity  which  paralyzed  the  movements  of  the  enemy. 
The  commanders  of  regiments  are  also  entitled  to  espe 
cial  mention,  but  sufficient  justice  cannot  be  done  them 
in  this  report.  I  must,  therefore,  refer  you  on  this  head 
to  the  report  of  the  brigade  commanders.  The  officers 
of  my  staff  have  my  thanks  for  the  fidelity  with  which 
they  discharged  the  trying  duties  that  devolved  upon  them. 
They  had  to  penetrate  the  thickest  of  the  fight  to  bring 
me  intelligence  of  the  state  of  the  field,  and  performed  their 
perilous  duty  throughout  the  day  with  cheerful  alacrity. 
It  affords  me  pleasure,  as  it  is  my  duty,  to  recommend  all 
the  officers  whose  names  I  have  specially  mentioned  to  the 
consideration  of  the  government.  I  have  the  honor  to  be, 
your  obedient  servant, 

JAS.  SHIELDS,  Bri.-Gen.  Com'g. 

REPORT     OF     ACTING     BRIGADIER-GENERAL     KIMBALL, 
COMMANDING    SHIELDS'    DIVISION. 

Headquarters  Shields'  Division, 
Camp  near  Strasburg,  Va.,  March  26th. 
MAJOR  H.  'G.  ARMSTRONG,  A.  A.  A.  General: 

Sir : — I  have  the  honor  to  submit  the  following  report 
of  the  battle  which  was  fought  near  Winchester,  Va.,  on 
Sunday,  23d  inst.,  between  the  forces  composing  this 
division,  which  I  had  the  honor  to  command,  and  the  rebel 
forces  under  General  Jackson. 

Early  in  the  morning  of  the  23d  the  enemy  com 
menced  the  attack,  advancing  from  Kernstown  and  oc 
cupying  a  position  with  their  batteries  on  the  heights  to 
the  right  of  the  road,  and  the  wood  in  the  plain  to  the  left 
of  the  road,  with  cavalry,  infantry  and  one  battery.  I  at 
once  advanced  the  Eighth  Ohio,  Colonel  Carroll,  with 
four  companies,  taking  the  left,  and  Lieutenant-Colonel 
Sawyer,  with 'three  companies,  taking  the  right,  of  the 
turnpike  road.  Colonel  Carroll  advanced  steadily,  coming 
up  witli  two  companies  of  the  Eighty-seventh  Ohio,  who 
had  been  out  as  pickets,  and  united  them  with  his  command, 
drove  one  of  the  enemy's  batteries,  which  had  opened 
a  heavy  fire  upon  him,  and,  after  a  sharp  skirmish,  routing 
five  companies  of  infantry,  which  were  posted  behind  a 
stone  wall,  and  supported  by  cavalry,  holding  this  position 
during  the  whole  day,  thus  frustrating  the  attempt  of  the 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  195 

enemy  to  tun-  our  left.  The  right  of  the  Eighth  Ohio 
remained  in  front  until  about  4  o'clock  p.  m.,  when  they 
were  recalled  to  support  one  of  our  batteries  on  the  heights. 
The  Sixty-seventh  Ohio  were  thrown  on  a  hill  to  our  right 
to  support  Jenks'  battery,  which  had  been  advanced  to  a 
position  commanding  the  village  of  Kernstown  and  the 
wood  on  the  right.  The  Fourteenth  Indiana  was  sent  for 
ward  to  support  Clark's  battery,  which  advanced  along  the 
road.  The  Eight)-- fourth  Pennsylvania  was  thrown  over 
the  hill's  to  the  right  to  prevent  a  flank  movement  of  the 
enemy.  The  Second  Brigade,  commanded  by  Colonel  Sul 
livan,  of  the  Thirteenth  Indiana,  Fifth  Ohio,  Sixty-second 
Ohio  and  Thirty-ninth  Illinois,  were  sent  to  the  left,  sup 
porting  Carroll's  skirmishers,  a  section  of  Davis'  battery 
and  Robinson's  First  Ohio  Battery,  and  to  prevent  an  at 
tempt  which  was  made  to  turn  that  flank.  We. had  suc 
ceeded  in  driving  the  enemy  from  both  flanks  and  the 
front  until  4  o'clock  p.  m.,  when  Jackson,  with  the  whole 
of  his  infantry,  supported  by  artillery  and  cavalry,  took 
possession  of  the  hillside  on  the  right,  and  planted  his  bat 
teries  in  a  commanding:  position  and  opened  a  heavy  and 
well-directed  fire  upon  our  batteries  and  their  supports,  at 
tracting  our  attention,  whilst  he  attempted  to  gain  our 
right  flank. with  his  infantry.  At  this  juncture  I  ordered 
the  Third  Brigade,  Colonel  E.  B.  Tyler,  Seventh  Ohio, 
commanding,  composed  of  the  Seventh  and  Twenty-ninth 
Ohio,  First  Virginia,  Seventh  Indiana  and  One  Hundred 
and  Tenth  Pennsylvania,  to  move  to  the  right  to  gain  the 
flank  of  the  enemy  and  charge  them  through  the  woods 
to  their  batteries,  posted  on  the  hill.  They  moved  for 
ward  steadily  and  gallantly,  opening  a  galling  fire  on  the 
enemy's  infantry,  the  right  wing  sent  forward  to  support 
Tyler's  brigade,  each  one  in  its  turn  moving  forward  gal 
lantly,  sustaining  a  heavy  fire,  from  both  the  enemy's  bat 
teries  and  his  musketry.  Soon  all  the  regiments  above 
named  were  pouring  forth  a  well-directed  fire,  which  was 
promptly  answered  by  the  enemy,  and  after  a  hotly-con 
tested  action  of  two  hours,  just  as  night  closed  in,  the 
enemy  gave  way  and  were  soon  completely  routed,  leaving 
their  dead  and  wounded  on  the  field,  together  with  two 
pieces  of  their  artillery  and  four  caissons.  Our  forces  re 
tained  possession  of  the  field,  and  bivouacked  for  the 
night.  The  batteries,  under  their  chief,  Lieutenant-Colonel 
Daum,  were  well  posted  and  admirably  served  during  the 
whole  action. 


196  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

I  respectfully  refer  you  to  the  several  accompanying 
reports  for  the  details  of  the  engagement.  I  regret  to 
report  the  loss  of  the  gallant  Colonel  Murray  of  the 
Eighty-fourth  Pennsylvania,  who  fell  while  bravely  lead 
ing  forward  his  men,  amidst  a  fearful  storm  of  shot  and 
shell. 

When  all  have  done  so  well,  both  officers  and  men, 
and  achieved  so  much,  it  would  be  seemingly  invidious 
to  particularize  any  individual  officer,  yet  I  can  say,  with 
out  doing  injustice  to  others,  that  Colonel  Tyler  deserves 
the  highest  commendation  for  the  gallant  manner  in  which 
he  led  his  brigade  during  the  conflict,  and  the  gallant  Car 
roll,  Harrow,  Foster,  Voris,  Patrick,  Thoburne,  Saw 
yer,  Buckley,  Chied  and  Creighton,  deserve  well  of  their 
country.  Colonel  Sullivan,  Candy's  Brigade,  on  the  left, 
was  not  attacked  in  force.  His  batteries  and  skirmishers 
engaged  the  enemy  and  prevented  the  turning  of  that 
flank,  and  he,  too,  merits  the  highest  commendation. 

NATHAN  KIMBALL,  Col.  Com'g  Shields'  Division. 

ACTING    BRIGADIER-GENERAL  TYLER'S  REPORT. 

Headquarters  Third  Brigade, 
Camp  near  Strasburg,  March  23d. 

NATHAN  KIMBALL,  Colonel  Commanding  Shields'  Division  : 
Sir: — My  command  left  Camp  Shields  at  n  o'clock 
a.  m.,  2jd  of  March,  reaching  the  tollgate  south  of  Win 
chester  just  as  our  batteries  were  opened  upon  the  enemy. 
Remaining  in  column  a  short  time,  I  received  your  order 
to  strike  the  enemy  on  his  left  flank  with  my  brigade, 
composed  of  the  Seventh  Ohio,  Colonel  Buckley;  First 
Virginia,  Colonel  Thoburne ;  Seventh  Indiana,  Lieutenant 
Cheek,  and  One  Hundred  and  Tenth  Pennsylvania, 
Colonel  Lewis. 

The  order  was  executed  with  the  Seventh  Ohio  on  the 
right,  Twenty-ninth  Ohio  on  the  left,  First  Virginia  in 
the  center,  Seventh  Indiana  on  the  right  wing  and  One 
Hundred  and  Tenth  Pennsylvania  on  the  left  wing,  ad 
vancing  in  column  of  divisions.  When  within  easy  musket 
range  the  enemy  opened  fire  upon  us  with  his  infantry 
force,  consisting  of  nine  regiments.  The  reception  was  a 
warm  one,  and  so  heavy  firing  was  it  that  I  ordered  up  the 
reserve  force  at  once,  wrhen  the  action  became  general. 
The  fire  of  the  enemy  was  poured  in  upon  us  from  behind 
a  stone  wall  with  terrible  effect,  vet  the  column  moved 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  197 

forward,  driving  them  from  their  cover  into  an  open  wood, 
when  our  men  gave  them  a  shower  of  leaden  hail.  The 
timely  arrival  of  the  Fourteenth  Indiana,  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  Harrow,  in  this  unequal  contest,  was  of  immense 
service,  followed,  as  they  were  soon  after,  by  the  Eighty- 
fourth  Pennsylvania,  Colonel  Murray ;  Thirteenth  Indiana, 
Lieutenant-Colonel  Foster,  and  still  later  by  the  Sixty- 
seventh  Ohio,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Voris,  and  Fifth  Ohio, 
Lieutenant-Colonel  Patrick,  routing  the  enemy  just  as  twi 
light  was  fading  into  night,  leaving  his  dead  and  wounded 
on  the  field.  We  took  from  him  one  six  and  one  twelve 
pounder  gun,  with  their  caissons,  and  about  800  prisoners. 
The  loss  of  the  enemy  in  killed  and  wounded  could  not  be 
less  than  500. 

To  speak  of  the  heroic  acts  of  those  engaged  in  the 
battle  would  require  too  much  space  in  this  brief  report. 
The  officers  and  men  behaved  as  gallantly  as  ever  men  did, 
and  are  entitled  to  great  credit.  The  field  officers  of 
different  regiments  exerted  themselves  manfully,  many  of 
them  having  their  horses  shot  under  them  early  in  the 
engagement,  others  seriously  injured.  They  pressed  for 
ward  with  their  men,  determined  to  conquer  or  die.  When 
all  did  so  well  and  showed  so  much  bravery  in  danger,  it 
would  be  unjust  to  mention  one  without  mentioning  all. 
That  officers  and  men  discharged  their  duty,  the  result 
plainly  shows,  and  to  them  belongs  the  victory. 

To  Acting  Assistant  Adjutant-General  E.  S.  Quay 
and  Aid-de-Camp  Lieutenant  Henry  Z.  Eaton,  of  my  staff', 
I  am  greatly  indebted  for  the  prompt  performance  of  their 
respective  duties.  Herewith  I  hand  you  a  report  of  the 
dead  and  wounded  of  my  command.  All  of  which  is  re 
spectfully  submitted.  I  am,  very  respectfully,  your  obedi 
ent  servant, 

E.    B.   TYLER, 
Colonel  Commanding  Third  Brigade,  Shields'  Division. 

Battlefield,  near  Winchester,  March  23d,  8  o'clock  p.  m. 

ACTING    BRIGADIER-GENERAL    NATHAN    KIMBALL,     Com 
manding  General   Shields'   Division  : 
Sir: — In  accordance  with  your  instructions,  I  struck 
the  enemy's  left  flank  with  my  command,  and  after  contest 
ing  vigorously  for  two  hours  and  forty  minutes,  he  left  on 
the  field  two  guns,  one  six  and  one  twelve  pounder,  with 
caissons,  and  over  500  of  his  dead  and  wounded.     My  com- 


198  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

mand,  with  the  reinforcements  sent  me,  rest  on  their  arms 
in  the  fields  occupied  by  the  enemy. 

E.    B.    TYLER,   Acting  Brigadier-General. 

OFFICIAL    REPORT    OF    CAPTAIN     R.     C     SCHRIBER,     OF 
GENERAL    SHIELDS'     STAFF. 

BRIGADIER-GENERAL  JAMES    SHIELDS,    Commanding    Sec 
ond  Division,  Fifth  Army  Corps  : 

General : — I  beg  respectfully  to  report  to  you  that 
after  having  received  on  Sunday  last,  the  23d  of  March,  at 
9  o'clock  a.  m.,  an  order  to  report  for  duty  as  aid-de 
camp  on  your  staff,  I  left  headquarters  for  Kernstown  and 
assisted  Colonels  Kimball,  Tyler  and  Sullivan  in  their 
efforts  as  commanders  of  brigades,  fighting  the  enemy 
under  General  Jackson,  and  to-  insure  unity  of  action  of 
their  respective  commands. 

I  reported  at  9:30  a.  m.  to  Colonel  Kimball,  acting 
brigadier  and  senior  officer  on  the  field,  who  was  stationed 
on  a  hill,  almost  one-half  of  a  mile  west  of  Kernstown, 
which  latter  place  is  intersected  by  the  turnpike  leading  to 
Strasburg.  There  I  informed  myself  as  to  the  events  which 
had  transpired  previous  to  my  arrival,  and  understood  that 
the  enemy,  who,  in  endeavoring  to  drive  in  our  pickets 
the  day  before,  had  been  repulsed,  had  opened  with  his 
artillery  about  8  o'clock  a.  m.  upon  our  forces  again,  and 
that  since  the  time  we  were  engaged  responding  to  his 
battery  of  four  guns,  which  he  had  then  in  play,  and  in 
endeavoring  to  repel  his  small  but  harassing  attacks  of  cav 
alry  upon  our  chain  of  sentinels. 

Reconnoitering  the  ground  surrounding  me,  I  found 
that  the  hill  upon  which  I  now  stood  with  Colonel  Kim 
ball,  and  the  hill  opposite  us,  upon  which  the  enemy's 
battery  was  planted,  about  half  a  mile  distant,  a  ravine  was 
lying,  running  from  east  to  wrest,  which  is  entirely  free 
of  wood.  When  about  half  a  mile  to  the  east  a  forest  con 
nected  both  hills,  through  the  center  of  which  passes  a 
mud  road,  and  is  bounded  on  its  extreme  right  by  another 
mud  road  leading  to  Cedar  Creek.  The  country  to  the 
left  (west)  of  the  turnpike  is  flat  and  comparatively  little 
wooded. 

We  placed  in  position  a  six-gun  battery,  commanded 
by  Captain  Jenks,  First  Virginia  Artillery,  to  oppose  the 
enemy's  four  guns,  which  latter  was  soon  reinforced  by  a 
whole  battery,  whereupon  Captain  Clarke's  regular  bat- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  199 

tery  was  put  in  prolongation  of  the  former  named.  Both 
batteries  were  fought  by  Colonel  Damn,  chief  of  artillery, 
General  Shields'  division,  in  person.  Our  fire  from  the 
two  batteries  became  too  hot  for  the  enemy,  and  they 
brought  a  third  battery  in  the  direction  of  their  right  wing, 
in  such  position  upon  our  two  batteries  on  the  hill  that 
they  enfiladed  them,  but  with  this  maneuver  exposed 
their  battery  to  a  raking  fire  of  one  of  the  Ohio  batteries, 
placed  near  Kernstown  to  defend  the  pike,  and  they  were 
necessitated  to  limber  to  the  rear  with  all  their  batteries, 
but  continued  their  fire. 

In  the  meantime  the  infantry  regiments  were  moving 
up  to  the  support  of  our  batteries,  and  formed  into  line 
of  battle  about  1,000  yards  to  the  rear  of  our  batteries, 
when  at  once  the  enemy's  heavier  battery  moved  to  the 
front  and  threw  in  rapid  succession  a  number  of  well- 
aimed  shells  into  our  batteries,  and  the  cavalry  and  infan 
try  stationed  upon  the  interior  slope  of  the  battery  hill, 
and  the  necessity  to  storm  and  take  their  guns  became 
evident. 

In  conjunction  with  Colonels  Kimball  and  Tyler  the 
following  infantry  regiments  were  drawn  up  in  mass,  par 
allel  with  each  other.  The  right,  resting  upon  the  mud 
road,  passing  through  the  forest,  was  held  by  the  Seventh 
Ohio,  the  Sixty-seventh  and  Fifth  following,  and  the 
Thirteenth  Indiana,  and  the  Eighty-fourth  Pennsylvania 
and  Twenty-ninth  Ohio  a  little  to  the  rear,  thus  leaving 
the  One  Hundred  and  Tenth  Pennsylvania  and  the  three 
companies  of  the  Eighth  Ohio  in  reserve.  During  the 
time  these  arrangements  were  made,  a  messenger  was  sent 
to  you,  General,  to  have  your  approval  as  to  this  flank 
movement,  and  I  personally  apprised  all  the  commanders 
in  the  rear  and  flanks  of  our  intentions,  so  as  to  keep  them 
on  the  alert. 

Colonel  Daum  was  enjoined  to  keep  his  artillery  in 
lively  fire,  so  as  to  direct  the  attention  of  the  enemy  from 
him,  and  when  the  order  came  to*  move  on  everything 
was  ready  to  respond ;  General  Tyler  moved  his  column  by 
the  right  flank  as  far  as  the  Cedar  Creek  road,  and  rested 
his  right  upon  the  same,  and  the  left  upon  the  before-men 
tioned  mud  road,  pushing  forward  upon  both  roads  some 
cavalry ;  changed  direction  to>  the  left,  right  in  front,  and 
moved  silently  but  steadily  upon  the  enemy's  left,  through 
the  woods,  for  almost  half  a  mile,  when,  coming  upon  a 
more  sparsely  wooded  ground,  he  made  a  half  wheel  to  the 


200  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

left  and  came  to  the  face  of  the  extreme  flank  of  the 
enemy,  who  received  him  from  behind  a  stone  wall  at 
about  200  yards  distance,  with  a  terrific  volley  of  rifled  arms, 
but  still  on  went  the  regiments  without  a  return  fire,  and 
then  threw  themselves  with  immense  cheering  and  an  un 
earthly  yell  upon  the  enemy,  who,  receiving  at  fifteen 
yards  our  first  fire,  fell  back  across  the  field,  thus  unmask 
ing-  two  six-pound  iron  guns,  which  hurled,  on  being 
cleared  in  front,  death  and  destruction  into  our  ranks 
with  their  canister.  But  still  onward  we  went,  taking  one 
gun  and  two  caissons,  and  making  there  a  short  stand. 
Again,  the  enemy  unmasked  two  brass  pieces,  which  at 
last  drove  us,  by  their  vigorous  fire,  back.  But  I  caused 
that  the  captured  gun  should  be  tipped  over,  so  that  the 
enemy,  in  regaining  the  ground,  could  not  drag  it  away. 
The  Fifth  Ohio  and  Eighty-fourth  Pennsylvania  threw 
themselves  once  more  with  fixed  bayonets  forward,  the 
former  losing  four  times,  in  a  few  minutes,  their  standard- 
bearer.  Captain  Whitcomb  at  last  took  the  colors  up 
again,  and,  cheering  on  his  men,  fell  also.  So,  too,  Colonel 
Murray,  whilst  gallantly  leading  on  his  Eighty-fourth 
Regiment.  In  fact,  that  ground  was  strewn  with  dead 
and  wounded.  General  Tyler  lost  there  his  aid,  Lieu 
tenant  Williamson,  of  the  Twenty-ninth  Ohio. 

I  hurried  back  to  bring  up  the  One  Hundred  and 
Tenth  and  the  Fourteenth  Indiana  by  a  right  oblique 
movement  through  the  woods,  and  the  enemy,  receiving 
all  the  combined  shock,  retired  and  left  us  in  possession 
of  our  dearly  bought  gun  and  caissons.  United,  onward 
we  pressed  again,  the  enemy's  two  brass  pieces  and  mus 
ketry  pouring  in  their  fire.  Three  companies  of  the  Eighth 
Ohio  reinforced  us;  we  gained  our  brass  piece  and  its 
caissons,  and  compelled  the  enemy  to  fall  back. 

This  was  at  7  o'clock  p.  m.  I  moved  to  the  right 
flank  and  caused  the  cannon  to  go  forward  on  the  now 
fast  retreating  enemy,  when  I  met  with  six  of  Ashby's 
cavalry,  who  shot  down  my  orderly  and  killed  his  horse, 
one  of  their  bullets  piercing  my  cap.  I  was  compelled 
to  use  my  sword  to  kill  one  of  them.  The  cavalry  cap 
tured  230  prisoners,  and  met  only  with  little  resistance 
from  the  enemy's  cavalry. 

At  8  o'clock  p.  m.  the  musketry  ceased.  A  few  can 
non  shot  from  their  extreme  left  were  fired  so  as  to  with 
draw  our  attention  from  the  retreating  foe,  and  all  was 
over.  Our  men  remained  on  the  field  of  battle,  picking  up 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  201 

the  wounded,  and  slept  upon  their  arms,  and  awoke  for 
the  pursuit  of  the  enemy  on  the  morning  of  the  24th,  who 
fell  rapidly  back  beyond  Newton,  when  at  9  o'clock  on  the 
morning  of  that  day  Major-General  Banks  took  command, 
and  I  reported  back  to  you. 

General,  I  have  the  honor  to  be  ever  ready  to  serve  in 
so  glorious  a  body  of  soldiers  under  your  able  leading. 
Your  most  obedient,  humble  servant, 

R.    C.    SCHRIBER. 

The  Cincinnati  Gazette  gives  the  following  descrip 
tion  of  the  battle  of  Harrisburg  Road :  It  raged  two 
hours.  Schenck  had  the  right,  Milroy  the  center,  and  the 
Blenker  division  the  left.  After  a  sharp  engagement  the 
enemy  retreated.  The  whole  army  had  crossed  the  river 
and  set  fire  to  the  bridge.  The  Union  loss  was  from  four 
to  five  hundred  killed  and  wounded.  Four  hundred  of 
the  enemy's  dead  were  found  unburied  on  one  field.  It 
is  believed  that  two  hundred  more  died  or  scattered  in 
different  directions. 

Col.  S.  S.  Carroll,  of  Ohio,  with  two  regiments  of 
Shields'  division,  reached  the  opposite  side  of  the  river 
from  here  yesterday  morning,  and  attempted  to  hold  the 
bridge,  but  was  driven  back  by  Jackson.  He  opened  w7ith 
his  artillery  this  morning  on  the  bridge  as  the  rebel  army 
was  crossing,  but  was  driven  back  by  the  superior  force  of 
Jackson  and  retreated  down  the  river. 

BRIGADIER-GENERAL    E.    B.    TYLER'S    OFFICIAL    REPORT 
OF    BATTLE    OF    PORT    REPUBLIC. 

Headquarters  Third  Brigade,  Near  Luray,  Va., 

June  12,   1862. 

GEN.   JAMES  SHIELDS,  Commanding  Division. 

Sir: — In  compliance  with  your  order  to  proceed  to 
Waynesboro,  I  left  Columbia  bridge  on  the  7th  inst., 
reaching  Naked  Creek  the  same  day,  going  into  camp 
under  orders  to  march  at  4  o'clock  a.  m.  next,  that  we 
might  reach  Port  Republic  at  the  time  you  indicated  to 
me.  When  within  about  six  miles  of  the  town  I  learned 
Acting  Brigadier-General  Carroll,  with  the  Fourth  Bri- 


202  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

gade,  had  engaged  the  enemy  at  or  near  the  town.  Im 
mediately  I  halted  my  train,  clearing  the  road  for  the 
troops  and  artillery,  and  pressed  forward  to  his  support  as 
rapidly  as  possible,  reaching  the  position  occupied  by  him, 
some  two  miles  north  of  the  town,  at  2  o'clock  p.  m.,  8th 
inst. 

The  position  was  selected  by  Colonel  Daum,  I  under 
stand,  as  the  only  tenable  one  in  that  vicinity.  From  that 
officer  I  learned  that  the  enemy  had  eighteen  pieces  of 
artillery,  planted  so  as  to  completely  command  all  the  ap 
proaches  to  the  town,  and  from  .the  engagement  with 
General  Carroll  that  morning  had  obtained  the  range  of 
the  different  points.  Immediately  on  the  arrival  of  my 
command,  Colonel  Daum  urged  an  attack  with  the  com 
bined  force  of  infantry  and  artillery,  to  which  I  so  far 
consented  as  to  order  the  infantry  into  position  under 
cover  of  a  thick  wood  which  skirted  the  road,  and  com 
menced  observing  the  enemy's  position  myself,  which  ap 
peared  to  me  one  to  defy  an  army  of  50,000. 

I  at  once  sent  for  General  Carroll,  Lieutenant-Colonel 
Scriber,  Captains  Clark  and. Robinson,  who  had  been  over 
the  ground,  they  all  agreeing  in  the  opinion  that  an  attack 
would  result  in  the  destruction  of  our  little  force.  About 
this  time  your  order  to  "Commandant  of  Post  at  Port  Re 
public"  was  handed  me;  upon  it,  and  the  opinion  of  these 
officers,  I  ordered  the  infantry  back  to  bivouac  for  the 
night.  A  heavy  picket  was  kept  well  to  the  front  to  ob 
serve  any  movement  of  the  enemy,  and  at  4  o'clock  a.  m. 
General  Carroll  and  myself  went  to  the  outer  videttes,  who 
reported  that  there  had  been  no  movement  of  the  enemy 
across  the  bridge  during  the  night,  their  pickets  only  ap 
pearing,  which  we  were  to  discover  ourselves. 

We  returned  to  camp,  and  a  few  moments  after  your 
order  of  June  8,  7 130  p.  m.,  from  Columbia  Bridge,  reached 
me,  and  while  writing  a  reply  I  was  informed  that  the 
enemy  were  advancing  upon  us,  or  rather  into  the  woods 
opposite  their  position,  evidently  with  a  view  of  outflanking 
us  upon  the  left.  Captains  Clark  and  Robinson  opened 
their  batteries  upon  them  with  effect,  and  Captain  Hunt- 
ington's  guns  were  soon  doing  the  same  good  work.  Two 
companies  of  skirmishers  and  two  regiments  of  infantry 
were  ordered  into  the  woods  to  counteract  this  movement 
of  the  enemy.  The  fire  of  our  skirmishers  was  soon  heard, 
and  I  ordered  two  more  regiments  to  their  support. 

A  sharp  fire  was  kept  up  in  the  woods,  for  a  few  mo- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  203 

ments  only,  when  the  enemy  retired  and  was  soon  seen  com 
ing  out  of  the  woods,  crossing  to  join  a  column  moving 
upon  our  right.  In  the  meantime  a  section  of  two  guns  had 
opened  upon  our  battery  on  the  left,  and  another  section 
was  taking  a  position  on  our  right.  The  Seventh  Indiana 
Infantry,  Colonel  Gavin,  was  sent  to  the  extreme  right  and 
was  met  by  two  rebel  regiments,  under  cover  of  the  river 
bank.  A  section  of  Captain  Clark's  battery  took  a  posi 
tion  well  to  the  right.  The  fire  of  the  enemy,  from  their 
masked  position,  compelled  Colonel  Gavin  to  retire  a  short 
distance,  which  he  did  in  admirable  order. 

The  Twenty-ninth  Ohio  was  sent  to  support  him,  mov 
ing  forward  in  splendid  style,  on  double  quick.  The  Sev 
enth  Ohio  was  next  sent  forward  to  support  Captain 
Clark's  guns ;  the  Fifth  Ohio  next,  to  support  a  section  of 
Captain  Huntington's  battery.  These  two  last  named  regi 
ments  moved  forward  and  engaged  the  enemy  in  a  style 
that  commanded  the  admiration  of  every  beholder.  Regi 
ment  after  regiment  of  the  enemy  moved  upon  our  right, 
and  the  engagement  became  very  warm.  The  First  Vir 
ginia,  Colonel  Thoburne,  who  had  been  ordered  into  the 
woods  on  the  left,  was  now  ordered  to  the  right,  entering 
the  open  field  with  a  loud  shout.  My  entire  force  was  now 
in  position.  On  our  right  was  the  Seventh  Indiana, 
Colonel  Gavin;  Twenty-ninth  Ohio,  Colonel  Buckley;  Sev 
enth  Ohio,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Creighton ;  Fifth  Ohio, 
Colonel  Dunning ;  First  Virginia,  Colonel  Thoburne ;  with 
sections  of  Captains  Clark  and  Huntington's  batteries. 

On  our  left,  the  key  of  the  position,  was  a  company  of 
the  Fifth  and  one  of  the  Sixty-sixth  Ohio  Infantry/de- 
ployed  through  the  woods  as  skirmishers.  The  Eighty- 
fourth  and  One  Hundred  and  Tenth  Pennsylvania  regi 
ments  were  also  well  up  in  the  woods.  The  Sixty-sixth 
Ohio,  Colonel  Candy,  was  directly  in  the  rear  of  the  bat 
tery,  composed  of  three  guns  of  Captain  Clark's  battery, 
three  guns  of  Captain  Huntington's,  and  one  of  Captain 
Robinson's  battery,  under  Lieutenant-Colonel  Hayward, 
and  upon  him  and  his  gallant  band  depended  everything 
at  this  critical  moment,  and  the  duty  was  well  and  gal 
lantly  executed.  Had  they  given  way,  the  command  must 
have  been  lost.  The  left  wing  of  Colonel  Candy's  regi 
ment  was  extended  into  the  woods,  and  close  in  the  rear 
of  the  battery,  which  position  they  held  until  a  retreat  was 
ordered. 

Additional  reinforcements  of  the  enemy  were  coming 


204  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

up  on  the  right,  having  abandoned  their  position  on  the 
left,  and  ordered  the  Eighty-fourth  and  One  Hundred  and 
Tenth  down  to  the  right,  but  before  they  reached  the  posi 
tion  assigned  them  the  enemy  was  in  full  retreat  before  our 
brave  men,  and  I  at  once  ordered  them  across  into  the 
wood  again.  Under  cover  of  the  engagement  on  our  right 
the  enemy  had  thrown  another  force  into  the  woods,  and 
pressed  them  down  upon  our  batteries  on  the  left.  So 
sudden  was  this  movement  that  they  passed  the  line  on 
which  the  Eighty-fourth  and  One  Hundred  and  Tenth 
were  ordered  unobserved — making  a  dash  upon  the  bat 
tery  so  sudden  and  unexpected  as  to  compel  the  cannoneers 
to  abandon  their  pieces. 

Colonel  Candy  met  the  enemy  with  his  regiment  with 
great  coolness,  his  men  fighting  with  commendable  brav 
ery.  The  Seventh  and  Fifth  Ohio  were  soon  supporting 
him,  driving  the  enemy  from  their  position  and  retaking 
the  battery.  The  artillery  officers  made  a  strong  effort, 
and  used  great  exertions  to  remove  their  guns,  but,  the 
horses  having  been  killed  or  disabled,  they  found  it  impos 
sible.  The  enemy  had  given  way  along  the  whole  line, 
but  I  saw  heavy  reinforcements  crossing  from  the  town 
that  it  would  have  been  impossible  for  us  successfully  to  re 
sist.  After  consulting  General  Carroll,  I  ordered  the 
troops  to  fall  back  under  his  direction,  with  a  view  of  re 
treating  until  we  should  meet  the  reinforcements  of  Gen 
erals  Kimball  and  Ferry. 

General  Carroll  took  command  of  the  covering  of 
the  retreat,  which  was  made  in  perfect  order,  and,  save  the 
stampede  of  those  who  ran  before  the  fight  was  fairly 
opened,  the  retreat  was  quite  as  orderly  as  the  advance. 

The  force  engaged  under  my,  command  could  not 
have  exceeded  3.000  men.  Of  the  enemy's  force  (my  in 
formation  comes  from  the  prisoners  taken  by  us)  none  of 
them  estimated  it  at  less  than  8,000  men  actually  in  the 
engagement. 

The  loss  of  our  artillery  we  feel  almost  as  keenly  as  we 
should  to  have  lost  our  colors,  yet  it  was  impossible  to  save 
them  without  animals  to  drag  them  through  the  deep  mud ; 
the  men  could  not  do  it.  While  we  deeply  feel  this  loss, 
we  have  the  satisfaction  of  knowing  that  we  have  one  of 
theirs,  captured  by  the  Fifth  Ohio,  and  driven  off  in  full 
view  of  their  whole  force,  sixty-seven  prisoners  following  it 
to  this  post. 

It  will  not  be  expected  that  I  can  mention  the  many 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  205 

gallant  actions  of  the  different  officers  upon  that  hard- 
fought  field.  Yet  I  cannot  do  justice  to  my  own  feeling 
without  remarking  that,  in  my  opinion,  braver,  more  de 
termined  and  willing  men  never  entered  a  battlefield.  Gen 
eral  Carroll  distinguished  himself  by  his  coolness  and  dash 
ing  bravery.  Upon  him  I  relied,  and  was  not  disappointed. 
For  heroic  gallantry  I  will  place  Colonel  Gavin,  Colonel 
Buckley,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Creighton,  Colonel  Dun 
ning,  Colonel  Thoburne,  Colonel  Candy  and  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  Hay  ward  beside  the  bravest  men  of  the  United 
States  army.  The  line  officers  of  the  different  regiments 
discharged  their  duty  nobly,  and  deserve  special  mention 
by  their  colonels.  Captains  Clark,  Robinson  and  Hunting 
don  served  their  guns  with  great  credit,  and  deserve  par 
ticular  notice. 

To  the  members  of  your  staff,  Lieutenant-Colonel 
Scriber,  Captain  Keiley  and  Captain  Keogh,  I  am  under 
many,  very  many,  obligations,  for  the  prompt,  efficient  and 
officer-like  manner  in  which  they  discharged  the  duties 
assigned  them.  The  two  latter  were  in  the  field  through 
the  hottest  of  the  engagement,  exposed  to  the  enemy's 
fire  from  first  to  last.  Captain  Keiley  received  a  severe 
wound  in  the  face,  while  urging  forward  the  men,  and 
was  carried  off  the  field. 

For  a  list  of  the  casualties  of  the  engagement,  I  re 
spectfully  refer  you  to  the  reports  of  the  several  regiments, 
accompanying  this  paper. 

The  loss  of  the  enemy  must  have  been  very  heavy. 
The  grape  and  canister  from  our  batteries  and  the  fire  of 
our  musketry  mowed  them  down  like  grass  before  a  well- 
served  scythe,  and  the  fact  of  their  heavy  force  retiring 
before  us  is  an  evidence  that  they  suffered  severely. 

Aid-de-Camp  Eaton  was  the  only  officer  of  my  own 
staff  present.  Captain  Quay  being  too  ill  to  take  the  field. 
Chaplain  D.  C.  Wright  of  the  Seventh  Ohio  volunteered 
to  serve  me.  The  duties  these  gentlemen  were  called  upon 
to  perform  were  arduous,  and  led  them  almost  constantly 
under  the  fire  of  the  enemy.  Yet  they  executed  their 
duties  with  commendable  coolness  and  energy,  meriting 
my  \varmest  thanks. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be,  very  respectfully,  your  obe 
dient  servant, 

E.    B.   TYLER,    Brigadier-General. 


200  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


CHAPTER     XIV. 


How  Shields  Decoyed  Stonewall  Jackson  Into  the  Battle  of  Winchester 
in  Harper's  Pictorial  History  of  the  Civil  War— Account  of  It 
in  Woods'  History  of  the  Seventh  Ohio— His  Account  of  the  Bat 
tle  of  Port  Republic— General  Taylor's  Account  in  "Destruction 
and  Reconstruction." 


In  volume  one,  Harper's  Pictorial  History  of  the  Civil 
War,  on  pages  344  to  347,  inclusive,  the  following  account 
of  McClellan's  campaign  in  Virginia  is  set  forth : 

Simultaneously  with  Johnston's  abandonment  of  Ma- 
nassas  in  March,  1862,  Jackson  fell  back  up  the  valley  from 
Winchester  toward  Staunton,  followed  by  Shields,  with  a 
division  of  Banks'  Fifth  Corps.  This  retreat,  which  was 
kept  up  as  far  as  New  Market,  brought  Jackson  within 
fifty  miles  of  Johnston,  who  lay  near  Gordonsville  await 
ing  the  development  of  McClellan's  plans. 

Shields  undertook  to  decoy  Jackson  from  joining 
Johnston.  He  made  a  feigned  retreat  back  to  Winchester, 
marching  his  whole  force  thirty  miles  one  day.  The  ruse 
was  successful.  Jackson  turned  to  pursue  Banks,  who 
thought  it  impossible  that  Jackson  would  return  to  at 
tack  him,  marched  his  whole  corps,  with  the  exception  of 
Shields'  division,  toward  Centerville.  Shields,  who  still 
hoped  that  Jackson  would  venture  to  attack,  secretly 
posted  the  bulk  of  his  division  in  a  secluded  position  two 
miles  from  Winchester.  The  people  of  that  town,  igno 
rant  of  this,  reported  to»  Jackson  that  the  place  was  evacu 
ated  except  by  a  small  rearguard.  In  the  evening  of  March 
22  Jackson's  cavalry  made  a  dash  into  Winchester,  driving 
in  Shields'  pickets.  The  attack  was  repulsed  after  a  sharp 
skirmish,  in  which  Shields  was  severely  wounded,  his  arm 
being  broken  by  the  fragment  of  a  shell.  Banks,  confident 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  201 

that  Jackson  would  not  renew  the  engagement,  set  off  the 
next  morning  for  Washington,  but  Shields,  anticipating  a 
strong  attack,  notwithstanding  his  wound,  prepared  to  re 
ceive  it.  The  assault  came  about  noon,  with  a  sharp  artil 
lery  fire,  which  met  with  a  strong  reply.  At  3  o'clock 
Tyler's  brigade  charged  upon  the  Confederate  batteries 
on  the  left  and  captured  them.  Then  followed  a  general 
and  successful  assault  upon  the  Confederate  right  and  cen 
ter.  The  Confederates  retreated,  leaving  their  dead  and 
wounded  behind.  Banks  returned  next  morning  and  pur 
sued  the  retreating  enemy  thirty  miles  to  Woodstock, 
ceasing  the  pursuit  only  when  his  men  were  thoroughly  ex 
hausted. 

The  Federal  loss  in  this  engagement  was  103  killed 
and  441  wounded.  Of  the  Confederates,  270  were  reported 
to  have  been  buried  on  the  battlefield,  and  many  others 
by  the  inhabitants.  Their  entire  loss  was  estimated  at  500 
killed  and  1,000  wounded.  The  Rebel  Records,  Vol.  4, 
pp.  328-343,  states  that  the  Federals  usually  style  this 
action,  fought  March  23d,  the  battle  of  Winchester.  The 
Confederates  more  properly  call  it  the  battle  of  Kernstown, 
from  the  hamlet  near  which  it  was  fought.  Shields  states 
his  own  force  to  have  been  6,000  infantry,  750  cavalry  and 
24  pieces  of  artillery.  He  estimates  the  force  of  the  enemy 
at  9,000  infantry,  1,500  cavalry  and  35  guns.  Pollard  says 
that  the  Confederate  forces  amounted  to  6,000  men,  be 
sides  Ashby's  cavalry,  while  Shields  was  18,000  strong. 
"The  enemy,"  he  says,  "was  left  in  possession  of  the  field 
of  battle,  two  guns,  four  caissons  and  about  three  hundred 
prisoners.  Our  loss  was  about  one  hundred  killed,  and 
probably  twice  as  many  wounded ;  that  of  the  enemy  was 
certainly  more  than  double.  The  greater  portion  of  our 
dead  left  on  the  field  of  battle  were  buried  under  the  direc 
tion  of  the  mayor  of  Winchester.  Some  fifty  citizens  col 
lected  the  dead,  dug  a  great  pit  on  the  battlefield  and 
gently  laid  the  poor  fellows,  in  their  last  resting-place. 
Scarcely  a  family  in  the  country  but  had  a  relative  there. 
Harper's  "Southern  History  of  the  War,"  Vol.  i,  pp. 
281-284. 


208  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

General  Shields  gives  the  following  account  of  the 
battle :  "On  a  reconnoissance  beyond  Strasburg  I  discov 
ered  Jackson  reinforced  in  a  strong  position  near  New 
Market,  within  supporting  distance  of  the  main  body  of  the 
enemy  under  Johnston.  It  was  necessary  to  decoy  him 
from  that  position.  Therefore,  I  fell  back  rapidly  to  Win 
chester  on  the  20th,  as  if  in  retreat,  marching  my  whole 
command  nearly  thirty  miles  in  one  day.  My  force  was 
placed  at  night  in  a  secluded  position,  two  miles  from 
Winchester,  on  the  Martinsburg  road.  On  the  2ist  the 
rebel  cavalry,  under  Ashby,  showed  themselves  to  our 
pickets  within  sight  of  Winchester.  On  the  22d  all  of 
General  Banks'  command,  with  the  exception  of  my  divi 
sion,  evacuated  Winchester,  en  route  for  Ce'nterville.  This 
movement  and  the  masked  position  of  my  division  made 
an  impression  upon  the  inhabitants,  some  of  whom  were  in 
secret  communication  with  the  enemy,  that  our  army  had 
left,  and  that  nothing  remained  but  a  few  regiments  to 
garrison  this  place.  Jackson  was  signalized  to  this  effect. 
I  saw  their  signal  and  divined  their  meaning.  About  5 
o'clock  on  the  afternoon  of  the  22d,  Ashby,  believing  that 
the  town  was  almost  evacuated,  attacked  our  pickets  and 
drove  them  in.  This  success  increased  his  delusion. 

"It  became  necessary,  however,  to  repulse  them  for  the 
time  being.  I  therefore  ordered  forward  a  brigade  and 
placed  it  in  front,  between  Winchester  and  the  enemy.  I 
only  let  them  see,  however,  two  regiments  of  infantry,  two 
batteries  of  artillery,  and  a  small  force  of  cavalry,  which 
he  mistook  as  the  whole  force  left  to  garrison  and  protect 
the  place.  In  a  little  skirmish  that  evening,  while  placing 
the  artillery  in  position,  I  was  struck  by  a  fragment  of  a 
shell,  which  broke  my  arm  above  the  elbow,  injured  my 
shoulder  and  damaged  me  otherwise. 

"I  commenced  making  preparations  for  any  emer 
gency  that  might  occur  that  night  or  the  next  morning. 
Under  cover  of  the  night  I  ordered  an  entire  brigade 
(Kimball's)  to  take  a  strong  position  in  advance.  I  pushed 
forward  four  batteries,  having  them  placed  in  a  strong 
position  to  support  the  infantry.  I  placed  Sullivan's  bri 
gade  on  both  flanks  to  prevent  surprise  and  to  keep  my 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  209 

flank  from  being  turned,  and  I  held  Tyler's  brigade  in 
reserve  to  operate  against  any  point  that  might  be  assailed 
in  front. 

"In  this  position  I  waited  and  expected  the  enemy's 
attack  the  next  morning.  My  advance  brigade  was  two 
miles  from  the  town,  its  pickets  extending  perhaps  a  mile 
further  along  the  turnpike  leading  to  Strasburg.  About 
8  o'clock  in  the  morning  I  sent  forward  two  officers  to  re- 
connoiter  the  front  and  report  indications  of  the  enemy. 
They  returned  in  an  hour,  reporting  no  enemy  in  sight,  ex 
cept  Ashby's  force  of  cavalry,  infantry  and  artillery,  which 
by  this  time  had  become  familiar  and  contemptible  to  us. 
General  Banks,  who  was  yet  there  in  person,  upon  hearing 
the  report,  concluded  that  Jackson  could  not  be  in  front 
possibly,  or  be  decoyed  so  far  away  from  the  main  body  of 
the  rebel  army.  In  this  opinion  I,  too,  began  to  concur, 
concluding  that  Jackson  was  too  sagacious  to  be  caught 
in  such  a  trap.  General  Banks  therefore  left  for  Washing 
ton.  His  staff  officers  were  directed  to  follow  the  same 
day  by  way  of  Centreville.  Knowing  the  crafty  enemy, 
however,  I  had  to  deal  with,  I  omitted  no  precaution.  My 
whole  force  was  concentrated  and  prepared  to  support 
KimbalFs  brigade,  which  was  in  advance.  About  half-past 
ten  o'clock  it  became  evident  we  had  a  considerable  force 
before  us,  but  the  enemy  still  concealed  himself  so  adroitly 
in  the  woods  that  it  was  impossible  to  estimate  his  num 
bers. 

"I  ordered  a  portion  of  the  artillery  forward  to  open 
fire  and  unmask  them.  By  degrees  they  began  to  show 
themselves.  They  planted  battery  after  battery  in  strong 
position,  on  the  center  and  both  flanks.  Our  artillery  re 
sponded,  and  this  continued  until  about  half-past  three 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  when  I  directed  a  column  of  in 
fantry  to  carry  a  battery  on  their  left  flank,  which  was 
clone  promptly  and  splendidly  by  Tyler's  brigade,  aided 
by  some  regiments  from  the  other  brigades.  The  fire  of 
our  infantry  was  so  close  and  destructive  that  it  made 
havoc  in  the  ranks.  The  result  was  the  capture  of  their 
guns  on  the  left  and  the  forcing  back  of  their  wing  on 

14 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  211 

the  center,  thus  placing  them  in  a  position  to  be  routed 
by  a  general  attack,  which  was  made  about  5  o'clock  by 
all  the  infantry,  and  succeeded  in  driving  them  in  flight 
from  the  field.  Night  fell  upon  us  at  this  stage,  leaving 
us  in  possession  of  the  field  of  battle,  two  guns  and  four 
caissons,  three  hundred  prisoners  and  about  a  thousand 
stand  of  small  arms.  The  loss  of  the  enemy  in  killed  was 
estimated  at  five  hundred  and  twice  that  number  wounded ; 
the  Union  loss,  one  hundred  and  fifty  killed  and  three  Hun 
dred  wounded/' 

The  victory  was  gratefully  acknowledged  by  the  Sec 
retary  of  War,  who  pronounced  it  a  "brilliant  achieve 
ment,"  while  General  McClellan,  then  general-in-chief, 
congratulated  General  Shields  and  his  troops  upon  their 
"energy,  activity  and  bravery." 

Harper  says :  "This  repulse  was  a  severe  check  to 
Jackson.  He  fell  back,  pursued  by  Banks,  to  Harrison- 
burg,  where  he  remained  for  three  weeks."  Shields'  divi 
sion  was  withdrawn  from  Banks  and  attached  to  McDow 
ell,  who,  thus  strengthened,  was  ordered  on  the  I7th  of 
May  to  join  McClellan  before  Richmond,  but  still  to  keep 
himself  in  a  position  to  cover  Washington.  Jackson,  art 
June  3d,  retreating,  passed  through  Strasburg  before  the 
junction  between  Fremont  and  Shields  was  to  have  been 
effected.  Checking  Fremont's  advance  upon  his  rear,, 
Jackson  got  clear  of  Strasburg,  where  he  learned  that 
•Shields  had  been  for  forty-eight  hours  in  possession  of 
Front  Royal,  but  had  not  joined  Fremont.  He  at  once 
inferred  that  he  was  marching  down  the  South  Fork  of 
the  Shenancloah  by  way  of  Luray,  meaning  to  cross  and 
get  first  to  New  Market.  Sending  a  detachment  to  burn 
the  bridges  over  the  South  Fork,  Jackson  kept  rapidly  on 
up  the  turnpike,  harassed  by  Fremont's  pursuing  force. 
So  close  were  they  upon  him  that  his  only  means  of  escape 
seemed  to  be  to  put  the  North  Fork  of  the  Shenandoah 
between  him  and  the  pursuers.  He  crossed  the  stream 
at  Mount  Jackson  on  the  3d,  destroying  the  bridge  be 
hind  him.  This  was  hardly  accomplished  when  the  Federal 
forces  appeared  on  the  opposite  bank.  It  took  a  whole 


212  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

day  to  reconstruct  the  bridge.  Jackson  had  thus  secured 
so  much  the  start,  and  on  the  5th  reached  Harrisonburg, 
the  point  from  which  he  had  commenced  his  adventurous 
inarch  (to  the  Potomac)  a  fortnight  before.  Here  he 
made  no  delay,  for  Fremont  was  again  close  on  his  rear. 
He  turned  to  the  east,  toward  Port  Republic,  on  the  North 
Fork,  hoping  to  cross  that  before  Shields,  who  was  march 
ing  more  slowly  down  its  east  side,  could  come  up.  Ash- 
by's  cavalry,  with  some  infantry,  was  left  as  a  rearguard 
at  Harrisonburg.  Colonel  Wyndham,  of  the  Union  cav 
alry,  making  a  reconnoissance  on  the  7th,  fell  into  an 
ambuscade,  and,  with  a  considerable  portion  of  the  men, 
was  captured.  An  infantry  skirmish  ensued,  in  which 
each  side  suffered  some  loss.  In.  this  skirmish  Ashby  was 
killed.  Thus  far,  owing  to  the  happy  accident  which  en 
abled  him  to  step  between  Fremont  and  Shields  at  Stras- 
burg,  and  to  the  start  gained  by  the  destruction  of  the 
bridge  at  Mount  Jackson,  the  Confederate  army  retreated 
without  serious  loss.  But  the  two  commands  of 
the  Federals,  each  fully  equal  to  his  own,  were  marching 
in  parallel  lines  about  fifteen  miles  apart,  but  with  the 
deep  South  Fork  of  the  Shenandoah,  over  which  all  the 
bridges  below  Port  Republic  had  been  destroyed,  between 
them. 

If  Shields  reached  this  place  first  in  force,  Jackson 
would  be  hemmed  in.  There  was  no  alternative  but  to 
prevent  this  junction  by  checking  Fremont,  and  then  either 
out-fighting  or  out-reaching  Shields.  Ewell,  whose  divi 
sion  had  performed  the  main  part  of  the  fighting  in  this 
•expedition,  was  posted  at  Cross  Keys,  midway  between 
Harrisonburg  and  Port  Republic,  while  Jackson  himself 
kept  on  four  miles  further  in  the  neighborhood  of  the 
latter  place.  Swell's  position  was  strong.  In  front  was 
a  valley  and  rivulet,  with  woods  on  either  flank.  He  was 
attacked  by  Fremont  on  the  8th.  The  action  lasted  from 
1 1  o'clock  in  the  morning  till  4  in  the  afternoon,  skirmish 
ing  and  artillery  fire  being  kept  up  until  dark.  Ewell  held 
the  position  during  the  night,  but  before  dawn  was  or 
dered  to  join  Jackson,  who  was  seriously  threatened  at 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  213 

Port  Republic  by  Shields.  In  this  action  Ewell  had  five 
brigades  of  8,000  men,  but  only  6,000  were  brought  into 
close  action.  Fremont's  whole  force  was  about  18,000, 
less  than  half  of  whom  were  brought  upon  the  field.  Both 
Fremont  and  Ewell  assert  that  they  occupied  the  field  of 
battle,  and  thus  each  claims  the  technical  honors  of  vic 
tory.  The  real  advantage  was  certainly  with  Ewell.  He 
had  checked  Fremont's  advance  and  left  Jackson's  whole 
force  free  for  another  day  to  act  against  Shields. 

Port  Republic  is  a  forlorn  village,  situated  in  the 
angle  formed  by  North  and  South  rivers,  affluents  of  the 
South  walk  of  the  Shenandoah.  The  South  River  is  a 
shallow  stream,  forclable;  the  North  River,  crossed  by  a 
wooden  bridge,  connecting  the  town  with  the  Harrison- 
burg  road. 

Shields'  advance  had  reached  this  place  on  the  morning 
of  the  8th.  A  body  of  cavalry  dashed  across  South  River 
into  the  town,  and  planted  a  gun  opposite  the  entrance  of 
the  bridge.  A  Confederate  brigade  crossed,  drove  them 
back  and  captured  the  guns,  the  cavalry  falling  back  three 
miles  to  their  infantry  support.  Night  closed  this  skir 
mish,  which  was  going  on  simultaneously  with  the  battle 
of  Cross  Keys,  seven  miles  distant. 

By  dawn  Ewell  had  joined  Jackson,  who  resolved  to 
throw  his  whole  force  across  the  river  and  attack  Shields, 
burning  the  bridge  in  his  rear  so  as  to  prevent  Fremont 
from  joining  Shields.  His  whole  force  was  now  upon 
the  east  side  of  the  South  Fork,  which  ran  between  him 
and  Fremont. 

Tyler,  who  led  the  advance  of  Shields,  had  barely 
3,000  men.  Posting  them  in  a  commanding  position,  cov 
ered  by  a  battery  of  six  guns,  he  awaited  the  attack.  Sev 
eral  assaults  of  the  enemy  were  repelled  with  heavy  loss, 
but  a  Confederate  brigade,  marching  through  a  dense  for 
est,  charged  upon  Tyler's  left  flank,  and  by  combined  as 
sault  in  front  and  flank  forced  him  from  his  position,  with 
the  loss  of  all  his  guns  except  one.  The  guns  were  aban 
doned  because  the  artillery  horses  had  been  killed. 

The  retreat  was  orderly,  the  enemy  pursuing  for  a 


214  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

number  of  miles.  Just  at  the  close  of  the  action  the  force 
of  Fremont  appeared  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river,  but 
no  attempt  was  made  to  cross. 

Jackson  states  his  loss  in  this  battle  at  133  killed,  929 
wounded  and  14  missing — 1,167  m  a^>  °f  whom  two-thirds 
belonged  to  Swell's  division,  which  had  been  also  en 
gaged  the  previous  day.  In  these  three  days  this  division 
lost  nearly  1,000  men.  The  Union  loss  in  killed  and 
wounded  must  have  been  much  smaller,  but  Jackson  claims 
to  have  taken  450  prisoners. 

Here  ended  the  pursuit  of  Jackson.  Why  the  forces 
of  Fremont  and  Shields  were  not  united  and  brought 
against  Jackson  is  one  of  the  mysteries  of  this  miserable 
campaign.  On  the  8th  of  June,  the  day  of  the  battle 
of  Cross  Keys,  orders  were  sent  from  the  War  Depart 
ment  that  Fremont  should  "take  post  with  his  main  force 
near  Harrisonburg  to  guard  against  operations  of  the 
enemy  down  the  Valley  of  the  Shenandoah,"  and  Banks, 
who  had  meanwhile  crossed  the  Potomac,  should  take  posi 
tion  at  or  near  Front  Royal.  Fremont,  instead  of  stopping 
at  Harrisonburg,  fell  back  in  a  few  days  as  far  as  Mount 
Jackson,  leaving  his  wounded  behind.  Shields  took  post 
at  New  Market,  and  Jackson,  on  the  i2th,  retired  across 
the  South  River,  where  he  remained  near  Weyers  Cave 
for  three  days,  when  he  set  out  to  join  Lee  at  Richmond. 

Woods  says,  "Colonel  Creighton  of  the  Seventh  Ohio, 
at  the  battle  of  Winchester,  which  followed  soon 
after,  his  was  the  first  regiment  in  the  famous  charge  of 
the  Third  Brigade,  from  which  it  acquired  such  renown. 
He  disagreed  with  the  commanding  officer  as  to>  the  man 
ner  of  making  the  charge,  preferring  to  deploy  before 
advancing,  then  to  charge  a  battery  in  close  column.  But, 
throwing  all  personal  feelings  and  preferences  aside,  he 
dashed  forward,  and  finally  deployed  his  regiment  within 
"eighty  yards  of  the  enemy's  line  of  battle,  and  under  a  ter 
rible  fire  of  both  musketry  and  artillery.  His  horse  being 
shot  from  under  him,  he  seized  a  musket  and  engaged 
in  the  strife,  firing  rapidly  till  near  the  close  of  battle, 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  215 

when  he  was  compelled  to  cease  for  the  purpose  of  exe 
cuting  some  order. 

On  the  return:  of  the  command  to  New  Market,  after 
the  pursuit  of  Jackson  to  near  Harrisonburg,  the  company 
tents  were  ordered  to  be  delivered  up,  whereupon 
Creighton  was  very  indignant,  and,  in  connection  with 
other  officers,  sent  in  his  resignation.  They  were  ordered 
to  report  to  General  Shields  the  next  morning.  Accord 
ingly,  dressed  in  their  "best,"  they  reported.  They  were 
received  with  all  the  politeness  that  general  knew  how  to 
assume,  with  an  invitation  to  be  seated.  The  general  in 
formed  them  that  their  resignations  would  not  be  accepted, 
but  remarked  that  "if  they  desired  it,  he  would  have  their 
names  stricken  from  the  army  rolls  in  disgrace."  This 
witticism  rather  amused  Creighton  than  otherwise,  and 
he  returned  to  camp  with  a  much  better  opinion  of  the 
general  than  he  was  possessed  of  before  making  his  visit. 

He  now  commanded  the  regiment  in  its  march  to 
Fredericksburg,  sharing  with  his  men  the  hardships  at 
tending  the  toilsome  march,  and  when,  a  few  days  after,  the 
regiment  returned  to  the  valley,  he  did  much  to  cheer  the 
men  in  that  discouraging  march. 

At  Front  Royal  he  remained  with  his  regiment  dur 
ing  a  heavy  storm  to  which  it  was  exposed  without  tents, 
disdaining  to  seek  shelter  and  comfort  while  his  men  were 
thus  exposed.  The  men  were  now  very  destitute  of  cloth 
ing,  especially  shoes,  but,  when  ordered,  he  moved  to 
Columbia  bridge,  followed  by  one  hundred  men  barefooted. 
He  now  went  personally  to  General  Shields,  but  was  coldly 
received  by  that  general,  being  subjected  to  insulting  re 
marks.  He  came  back  to  his  regiment  with  that  same  un 
utterable  expression  of  contempt  stamped  upon  his  fea 
tures,  which  all  will  remember  who  served  with  him  in  the 
field,  and,  getting  his  men  in  column,  closed  in  mass,  made 
a  speech.  Said  he :  "I  am  unable  to  procure  shoes  or 
other  comforts  for  you,  but  I  will  follow  these  generals 
until  there  is  not  a  man  left  in  the  regiment.  Forward, 
Company  H !"  And  he  did  follow  them  to  Port  Republic, 
where  his  words  came  near  proving  true." 


216  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

WOODS'     SEVENTH     REGIMENT     ACCOUNT     OF     BATTLE 
OF    PORT    REPUBLIC. 

Port  Republic  is  situated  at  the  junction  of  two  forks 
of  the  south  branch  of  the  Shenandoah  River.  Jackson's 
whole  army  was  in  the  vicinity  of  the  place,  the  most  of  it 
occupying  the  west  bank  of  the  river.  In  rear  of  Jackson's 


GEN.   SHIELDS    AT    PORT    REPUBLIC. 


position,  at  Cross  Keys,  were  General  Fremont's  forces. 
At  the  latter  place,  on  the  previous  day,  Fremont  had 
defeated  Jackson,  with  heavy  loss  to  the  latter.  Jackson, 
having  thus  failed  to  beat  back  Fremont,  was  compelled 
to  cross  the  river  at  Port  Republic,  and,  defeating  Shields' 
command,  pass  through  a  gap  in  the  mountain  to  Gor- 
donsville. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  217 

When  General  Tyler's  command  arrived  on  the  field 
Lieutenant-Colonel  Daum,  chief  of  artillery,  advised  an 
immediate  attack,  but  the  general  wisely  concluded  to 
await  the  order  of  General  Shields.  Selecting  a  good  posi 
tion  for  defense,  the  command  bivouacked  for  the  night. 

Early  in  the  morning  of  June  Qth  the  enemy  was 
seen  to  debouche  into  the  plain  in  our  front,  when  our 
artillery,  under  Captains  Clark,  Robinson  and  Huntington, 
opened  a  heavy  fire  upon  him.  This  force  moved  into 
the  woods  on  our  left,  and,  passing  up  a  spur  of  the  Blue 
Ridge,  threw  themselves  rapidly  forward,  with  a  view  of 
turning  that  wing  of  the  army.  Two  companies  of  skir 
mishers  and  two  regiments  of  infantry  were  sent  into  the 
woods  to  counteract  this  movement.  The  skirmishers  hav 
ing  become  warmly  engaged,  two  more  regiments  were 
sent  forward  to  their  support.  The  enemy  now  abandoned 
his  intention,  and,  coming  out  of  the  woods,  swept  across 
the  field  to  our  right,  uniting  with  a  column  which  was 
advancing  to  the  attack. 

During  this  time  the  Seventh  was  supporting  a  section 
of  Huntington's  battery.  This  new  movement  was  di 
rected  against  the  position  occupied  by  it.  When  arriving 
within  range  of  the  guns  the  enemy  charged.  The  regi 
ment  reserved  its  fire  until  the  rebel  column  approached 
within  easy  range,  when,  by  order  of  Colonel  Creighton, 
the  regiment,  which  had  hitherto  been  concealed  by  the 
tall  spires  of  wheat,  rose  to  its  feet,  and  delivered  its  fire. 
This  shower  of  lead  made  a  fearful  gap  in  the  lines  of  the 
advancing  column.  It  staggered  and  finally  halted.  The 
Seventh  now  plunged  into  the  midst  of  the  foe,  when  an 
awful  scene  of  carnage  followed.  After  a  short  struggle 
the  enemy  was  pressed  back,  followed  by  the  exultant  vic 
tors.  The  Fifth  and  Twenty-ninth  Ohio  regiments  did 
gallant  service  in  this  charge.  When  the  enemy  had  been 
pressed  back  for  half  a  mile,  the  column  halted,  re-formed 
and  then  fell  back  to  its  old  position. 

The  enemy  now  made  a  furious  attack  on  the  ex 
treme  right  of  the  division,  to  meet  which  the  Seventh 
changed  front  on  the  fourth  company.  The  enemy  was 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

soon  driven  back  in  great  confusion,  and  with  heavy  loss. 
Immediately  recovering  from  this  temporary  check,  he 
made  an  assault  on  the  center,  which  resulted  in  his  repulse 
with  greater  loss  than  in  any  previous  attack,  the  Fifth 
Ohio  alone  capturing  a  piece  of  artillery  and  many  prison 
ers. 

During  these  operations  the  enemy  sent  a  heavy  col 
umn  against  our  left,  and,  debouching  from  the  timber, 
came  down  with  such  rapidity  as  to  overwhelm  the  small 
force  of  infantry  supporting  four  guns  of  Clark's  battery. 
This  force,  endeavoring  to  make  a  defense,  came  near  be 
ing  captured.  The  guns,  of  course,  fell  into  the  hands  of 
the  enemy.  The  Seventh  and  Fifth  Ohio  regiments  were 
now  directed  to  regain  the  position.  Moving  by  the 
left  flank  to  the  rear  of  the  position  under  a  heavy  fire, 
these  two  regiments  dashed  up  the  hill  and  over  the  guns 
into  the  midst  of  the  terrified  rebels.  Five  color-bearers 
had  now  been  shot  down  while  advancing  as  many  rods. 
Lieutenant  King  seized  the  colors  and  pressed  forward, 
followed  by  the  regiment,  which  sent  volley  after  volley 
after  the  fugitives,  the  firing  ceasing  only  when  the  rebels 
were  covered  by  a  friendly  hill.  We  were  soon  ordered  to 
drive  them  from  this  position,  which  was  done  in  gallant 
style,  the  command  charging  up  the  steep  sides  of  the  hill 
in  the  face  of  the  foe. 

A  large  column  of  the  enemy  was  now  seen  advancing 
from  the  bridge  to  the  scene  of  action.  It  was  therefore 
thought  advisable  by  General  Tyler  to  withdraw  from  the 
field  during  this  check  of  the  enemy,  and  before  these 
reinforcements  could  be  brought  into  the  contest.  This 
movement  was  executed  under  the  direction  of  Colonel 
Carroll,  and,  with  a  few  exceptions,  the  retreat  was  as  or 
derly  as  the  advance. 

After  falling  back  some  miles  we  met  the  balance  of 
the  command  under  General  Shields,  who  assumed  the  di 
rection  of  the  forces.  Eighteen  miles  from  the  battle 
field  the  command  halted  for  the  night,  and  on  the  third 
day  reached  the  vicinity  of  Luray,  where  it  went  into 
camp. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  219 

The  importance  of  this  engagement  has  been  under 
rated.  Great  and  beneficial  results  to  the  Union  army 
would  have  followed  a  victory;  as  it  was,  a  great  disaster 
succeeded.  The  impetuous  Jackson,  having  thus  pre 
vented  McDowell's  forces  from  uniting  with  the  grand 
army,  dashed  down  in  front  of  Richmond,  and,  hurling  his 
army  against  the  right  wing  of  McClellan,  gave  the  Fed 
eral  army  its  first  check,  which  finally  resulted  in  its  over 
throw.  McClellan,  expecting  McDowell,  received  Jack 
son.  Had  the  former  formed  a  junction  with  him  the 
grand  army  would  have  entered  Richmond,  but  receiving 
Jackson,  it  entered  Washington.  This  failure  to  intercept 
Jackson  was  due  to  General  Shields'  disobedience  of  or 
ders.  His  entire  division  should  have  been  on  the  ground 
Sunday,  or  none  of  it,  and  on  its  arrival  he  should  have 
burned  the  bridge.  Then  the  capture  of  Jackson  would 
have  been  rendered  probable,  but,  as  events  occurred,  it 
was  impossible. 

In  Chapter  XI,  Wood's  Seventh  Ohio  Regimental 
History,  I  find  the  following: 

Immediately  after  the  occupation  of  Winchester,  the 
enemy's  cavalry  advance  becoming  troublesome,  a  plan 
was  laid  for  its  capture.  Colonel  Mason,  of  the  Fourth 
Ohio,  was  sent  out  on  the  road  to  Front  Royal 
with  a  brigade  composed  of  infantry,  cavalry  and 
artillery,  with  instructions  to  proceed  until  he  arrived  at 
the  last  road  leading  to  the  right  before  reaching  Front 
Royal,  which  road  he  was  to  take,  and  by  it  strike  the 
rear  of  the  enemy  at  Middletown,  a  small  hamlet  equally 
distant  from  both  Winchester  and  Strasburg.  He  was 
soon  after  followed  by  General  Shields,  with  6,000  men, 
who  moved  on  the  direct  road  to  Middletown.  Colonel 
Mason's  command,  arriving  at  this  place  in  advance  of 
Shields'  column,  encountered  the  enemy's  pickets,  and 
drove  them  to  Cedar  Creek  bridge,  which,  having  covered 
with  combustibles,  they  fired.  When  the  troops  of  Colonel 
Mason  arrived  in  the  vicinity,  they  were  opened  upon  by 
a  battery,  to  which  they  replied,  with  no  effect,  however, 


220  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

as  the  distance  was  too  great.     Shields  coming  up  with 
his  division  after,  the  entire  force  bivouacked  for  the  night. 

Early  the  following  morning  the  command  crossed 
the. river  without  opposition,  but  on  arriving  at  Strasburg 
the  enemy  opened  fire  from  a  battery  planted  on  a  hill 
beyond  the  town.  Shields,  suspecting  that  the  entire  force 
of  Jackson  was  in  the  vicinity,  made  his  dispositions  for 
immediate  battle.  The  Seventh,  being  ordered  out  on  the 
road  beyond  the  town,  were  fired  upon  by  a  masked  bat 
tery,  but  none  injured.  After  having  been  exposed  to 
this  fire  for  half  an  hour,  it  was  withdrawn.  Soon  after 
our  artillery  was  got  into  position,  and  after  thirty  pieces 
of  cannon  had  belched  forth  their  fire,  the  rebels  fled  in 
haste.  During  this  fire  Mason's  cavalry  advanced  so  far 
out  on  the  road  that  they  were  mistaken  -for  the  enemy 
by  Captain  Clark,  of  a  battery  of  regulars.  He  therefore 
sent  a  shell  among  them,  with  such  accuracy  as  to  kill  a 
few  horses  and  slightly  wound  one  man. 

An  advance  being  ordered,  the  pursuit  was  continued 
for  five  miles,  when  the  command  returned  to  Strasburg 
and  encamped  for  the  night.  On  the  following  morning 
it  fell  back  to  its  old  camp,  the  Seventh  marching  twenty- 
two  miles  in  seven  hours,  with  but  one  halt. 

This  reconnoissance  to  Strasburg  leaving  no  doubt  on 
the  minds  of  both  Banks  and  Shields  that  the  enemy  was 
not  in  front  in  force,  the  first  division  of  Banks'  corps,  on 
the  2Oth,  commenced  its  movement  to  Manassas,  in  ac 
cordance  with  a  letter  of  instruction  from  General  McClel- 
lan,  of  the  i6th.  General  Banks  did  not  follow  this  divi 
sion  immediately,  but  remained  at  Winchester  until  12 
o'clock  on  Sunday,  the  23d.  when  he  started  for  Harper's 
Ferry.  All  this  time  Shields  thought  he  was  being  trifled 
with  by  the  rebel  general,  Ashby. 

On  Saturday,  the  22d,  there  had  been  a  good  deal  of 
firing  in  the  early  part  of  the  clay,  but  what  occasioned 
it  did  not  seem  to  be  well  understood,  except  to  those  en 
gaged.  But  during  the  afternoon  it  was  thought  prudent 
to  make  all  needful  preparations  for  battle,  so  as  not  to  be 
surprised  in  case  it  should  prove  that  a  greater  force  than 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  221 

Ashby's  was  in  front.  Therefore  the  whole  division  was 
ordered  up.  The  Third  Brigade,  however,  did  not  pass 
through  the  town.  Shields  went  to  the  front,  followed  by 
the  First  and  Second  brigades.  As  these  forces  emerged 
from  the  city  the  rebel  cavalry  made  a  dash  at  the  pickets, 
who  fled  in  some  confusion  through  the  little  hamlet  of 
Kernstown,  but  rallied  soon  after,  and  by  a  well-directed 
volley  of  musketry  emptied  several  rebel  saddles.  This 
success  enabled  them  to  retire  in  safety.  The  rebel  cavalry 
soon  after  advanced,  when  a  sharp  skirmish  ensued.  Our 
pickets  having  been  reinforced  by  several  detached  com 
panies  were. enabled  to  maintain  their  ground.  In  the 
meantime  the  rebels  opened  on  our  lines  from  a  battery 
planted  on  an  eminence,  immediately  after  which  a  Union 
battery  wheeled  into  position,  when  a  spirited  artillery 
duel  took  place.  While  directing  the  fire  of  this  battery 
Shields  was  struck  on  the  arm  by  a  fragment  of  a  shell, 
fracturing  the  arm  and  producing  a  painful  wound.  He, 
however,  continued  in  the  field  for  some  time  after  the 
accident  occurred,  but  was  finally  taken  to  a  house  close 
by,  and  his  arm  dressed,  after  which  he  was  taken  to  town 
in  an  ambulance. 

The  firing  having  ceased,  the  First  Brigade  went  into 
camp  on  the  spot,  while  the  Second  Brigade  encamped 
in  the  rear.  The  Third  Brigade  filed  into  an  open  field 
near  where  they  were  stationed  during  the  operations  in 
front. 

During  Saturday  night  a  strong  picket  was  kept  well 
out  to  the  front,  while  the  remaining  troops  slept  on  their 
arms.  Nothing  occurred  during  the  night  to  disturb  the 
several  camps. 

Morning  dawned  bright  and  pleasant.  The  stillness 
which  rested  over  the  field  of  the  previous  day's  opera 
tions  gave  token  of  the  intention  of  the  belligerents  to 
respect  the  Sabbath  day.  In  view  of  the  general  quiet, 
the  Second  and  Third  brigades  were  ordered  back  to  their 
camp  on  the  Martinsburg  pike. 

It  was  nearly  noon  when  the  Seventh  arrived,  and  be 
fore  the  men  had  barely  time  to  eat  a  hurriedly  prepared 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

dinner,  it  was  again  ordered  forward.  This  time  the  march 
was  rapid.  The  distant  booming  of  cannon  induced  many 
a  disturbed  reflection  as  to  what  lay  before  us.  As  we 
passed  through  Winchester  to  the  south  we  emerged  into 
an  open  plain.  This  was  crowded  with  people,  as  were 
also  the  house-tops.  They  had  assembled,  apparently,  for 
the  purpose  of  seeing  the  Union  army  defeated  and 
crushed,  and  to  welcome  the  victors  into  the  city. 

Arriving  on  the  field,  we  found  our  forces  occupying  a 
commanding  position  in  rear  of  a  range  of  hills  overlook 
ing  Kernstown,  while  the  batteries,  posted  at  intervals  on 
the  crest  of  these  hills,  were  maintaining  a  heavy  fire  on 
the  right  of  the  enemy's  position,  which  alone  seemed  to 
give  evidence  of  any  purpose  to  advance.  The  left  of  our 
line  was  held  by  the  Second  Brigade,  Colonel  Sullivan, 
while  the  center  and  right  were  held  by  the  First  Brigade. 
Colonel  Kimball,  commanding  the  division,  was  stationed 
on  a  commanding  eminence,  from  which  several  batteries 
were  pouring  their  shot  and  shell  into  the  enemy  whenever 
he  showed  himself  within  range. 

Up  to  this  time,  the  main  fighting  had  occurred  in 
front  of  our  left,  but  soon  after  a  battery  opened  in  front 
of  the  right,  from  a  piece  of  timber,  which  our  batteries 
were  unable  to  silence.  It  became  evident  from  this  that 
the  heavy  skirmishing  which  the!  enemy  had  kept  up  from 
their  right  was  simply  a  feint,  for  the  purpose  of  drawing 
the  greater  part  of  our  force  to  that  part  of  the  field,  when 
a  spirited  onslaught  would  be  made  on  the  other  flank, 
which  was  expected  to  turn  our  right  wing,  and  thus  give 
them  the  victory.  It  was  a  conception  worthy  the  genius 
of  a  Jackson,  but  it  was  entirely  unsuccessful,  as  no  troops 
were  sent  to  that  part  of  the  field  beyond  what  ordinary 
prudence  required ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  becoming  satis 
fied  of  the  intention  of  the  enemy,  Colonel  Kimball  re 
solved  to  charge  this  battery.  The  work  \vas  assigned  to 
the  Third  Brigade.  Colonel  Tyler,  calling  in  the  Seventh, 
which  had  been  supporting  a  battery  from  the  time  it 
arrived  on  the  field,  formed  his  brigade  in  column,  by 
divisions,  and  immediately  moved  forward,  at  the  same 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  22* 

time  changing  direction  to  the  right  and  passing  up  a 
ravine,  shielded  by  a  piece  of  timber,  which  skirted  it  on 
the  side  toward  the  enemy. 

After  arriving  at  some  distance  to  the  right,  the  col 
umn  changed  direction  to  the  left,  and  after  a  march  of 
nearly  a  mile  it  arrived  on  the  flank  and  partly  in  the  rear 
of  the  enemy.  It  had  now  reached  an  eminence  in  a  dense 
wood.  In  front  the  battery,  which  was  the  object  of  our 
movement,  was  playing  vigorously  upon  the  First  Brigade, 
to  which  a  spirited  fire  was  returned  by  Robinson's  battery, 
which  had  wheeled  into  position  on  the  extreme  right. 
This  acted  as  a  cover  to  the  movements  of  our  brigade. 
Breathless,  and  with  anxious  hearts,  we  awaited  the  re 
turn  of  our  scouts,  which  would  be  the  signal  for  a  plunge 
into  the  unknown.  We  were  not  kept  long  in  suspense,  for 
in  a  few  minutes  the  order  was  given  to  change  direction 
to  the  left,  and  the  column  moved  forward,  preceded  by  a 
line  of  skirmishers.  After  marching  in  silence  for  some 
distance,  the  sharpshooters  opened  a  destructive  fire  on 
us  from  behind  trees.  We  were  immediately  ordered  to 
charge,  and,  with  a  prolonged  yell,  the  command,  led 
by  the  Seventh  Ohio,  swept  like  a  torrent  down  the  hill. 
A  ravine  now  lay  in  front,  and,  at  a  short  distance,  a  slight 
eminence,  and  still  beyond  a  solid  stone  wall,  behind 
which,  in  three  lines,  nine  regiments  of  the  enemy  lay  con 
cealed.  It  was  a  fearful  moment.  The  rebel  artillery, 
in  the  rear  of  this  stone  wall,  had  been  turned  upon  the 
advancing  column.  The  grape  and  canister  were  tearing 
the  bark  from  the  trees  over  our  heads,  while  the  solid 
shot  and  shell  made  great  gaps  in  their  trunks.  Under 
our  feet  the  turf  was  being  torn  up,  and  around  and  about 
us  the  air  was  thick  with  flying  missiles.  Not  a  gun  wras 
fired  on  our  side.  The  head  of  the  column  soon  reached 
the  ravine,  when  a  deafening  discharge  of  musketry 
greeted  us.  A  sheet  of  flame  shot  along  the  stone  wall,  fol 
lowed  by  an  explosion  that  shook  the  earth,  and  the 
missiles  tore  through  the  solid  ranks  of  the  command  with 
a  fearful  certainty.  The  brigade  staggered — halted.  With 
breathless  anxiety  we  anticipated  a  counter  charge  by  the 


224  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

rebels,  but  it  came  not.  Victory  to  our  arms  followed 
that  omission  on  the  part  of  the  enemy.  The  order  being 
given  to  fire,  the  column  recovered  from  the  confusion 
into  which  it  had  been  temporarily  thrown.  The  Seventh 
now  advanced  to  the  eminence  beyond  the  ravine,  and, 
from  a  partial  cover,  maintained  the  unequal  contest  till 
the  other  regiments  could  form  and  come  to  its  support. 
The  One  Hundred  and  Tenth  Pennsylvania  Regiment  was 
throwrn  into  such  confusion  that  it  \vas  of  little  service  dur 
ing  the  remainder  of  the  day.  An  order  was  given  to  the 
Seventh  to  prolong  its  line  to  the  left.  An  attempt  was 
made  to  execute  the  order,  when  the  left  wing,  passing 
over  a  fence  into  an  open  field,  received  such  a  well- 
directed  fire  as  to  compel  it  to  fall  back  to  its  old  position. 
During  this  part  of  the  contest  the  rebe1s  endeavored  to 
extend  their  left  so  as  to  flank  us  on  the  right.  To  meet 
this  movement  Tyler  ordered  the  First  Virginia  to  move 
to  the  right.  Passing  into  an  open  field,  it  was  exposed 
to  a  crossfire,  which  soon  drove  it  back  to  the  timber. 

The  roar  of  musketry  was  now  deafening.  The  dying 
and  the  dead  were  lying  thick  upon  the  hillside,  but  neither 
army  seemed  to  waver.  The  confusion  attending  the  get 
ting  of  troops  into  action  had  ceased.  The  great  "dance 
of  death"  seemed  to  be  going  forward  without  a  motion. 
The  only  evidence  of  life  on  that  gory  field  was  the  vomit 
ing  forth  of  flame  and  smoke  from  thousands  of  well-aimed 
muskets.  From  the  blue  column,  which  rolled  and  tum 
bled  in  its  ascent  from  the  battlefield,  the  unerring  bullet 
sped  on  its  errand  of  death.  The  other  regiments  are  seen 
coming  to  the  rescue.  The  right  \ving  of  the  gallant 
Eighth  Ohio  takes  position  on  the  left,  followed  by  the 
no  less  gallant  Thirteenth  and  Fourteenth  Indiana,  Fifth 
and  Sixty-seventh  Ohio  and  Eighty-fourth  Pennsylvania. 
These  regiments  opened  a  heavy  fire,  which  was  replied  to 
by  the  enemy  in  gallant  style. 

The  battle  now  raged  fiercely  until  near  night,  when 
the  enemy  began  to  show  signs  of  giving  way.  At  this 
the  Union  forces  advanced  a  little,  at  the  same  time  de 
livering  their  fire  with  accuracy.  As  the  shades  of  evening 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  225 

deepened  into  night  the  enemy  began  to  fall  back.  At  this 
crisis  Colonel  Kimball  ordered  a  charge  along  the  whole 
line,  when  the  retreat  became  a  rout.  In  their  flight  the 
enemy  left  in  front  of  the  Third  Brigade  two  pieces  of 
artillery  and  four  caissons. 

That  night  the  Seventh  bivouacked  on  the  spot  now 
made  historic  by  its  gallantry.  The  wounded  were  being 
brought  in  all  night  long,  while  the  dead  were  lying  in 
heaps  around  us,  their  increasing  distortions  and  ghastli- 
ness  adding  new  horrors  to  the  battlefield. 

At  early  dawn  the  next  clay  we  were  ready  to  renew 
the  work  of  blood  and  carnage,  but  there  was  no  occasion ; 
the  victory  of  the  day  before  was  complete ;  the  rebels  had 
no  desire  of  renewing  the  contest.  They  gave  the  advanc 
ing  column  a  few7  parting  salutes  from  a  battery  and  then 
beat  a  hasty  retreat.  We  followed  them  that  day  to  Ceclar 
Run,  where  just  at  night  a  slight  skirmish  occurred,  with 
some  loss  to  the  rebels.  The  following  day  the  Union 
forces  occupied  Strasburg,  when  the  pursuit  ceased. 

The  number  of  rebel  forces  .engaged  in  the  battle  of 
Winchester  has  been  variously  estimated.  They  probably 
numbered  sixteen  regiments  of  infantry,  four  full  batteries 
of  artillery,  together  with  one  of  four  guns ;  in  the  aggre 
gate  twenty-eight  pieces,  and  three  battalions  of  cavalry, 
under  Ashby  and  Stewart — in  all,  1 1,000  men.  The  Union 
forces  consisted  of  thirteen  regiments  of  infantry,  four 
full  batteries  of  artillery  and  a  section;  in  the  aggregate 
twenty-six  pieces,  and  a  battalion  of  cavalry — in  all  9,000 
men. 

The  rebel  army  was  the  attacking  force,  yet  the  en 
gagement  between  the  infantry  was  on  ground  of  their 
own  choosing,  by  reason  of  the  Third  Brigade  charging 
one  of  their  batteries.  It  was  in  the  vicinity  of  this  battery, 
which  was  at  least  a  mile  in  advance  of  our  selected  line 
of  battle,  that  the  fighting  occurred  which  turned  the  tide 
of  battle.  At  this  point'  the  enemy  had  every  advantage 
of  position.  He  was  securely  posted  behind  a  stone  wall 
and  in  a  belt  of  timber  extending  along  a  ridge,  while 
our  forces  were  compelled  to  advance  across  a  plain,  ex- 
is 


226  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

posed  to  a  galling  fire  from  infantry  and  artillery,  and 
it  was  not  until  they  arrived  within  eighty  yards  of  this 
line  that  anything  like  a  fair  ground  could  be  obtained. 
Jackson,  the  famous  commander  of  the  no  less  famous 
"Stonewall  Brigade,"  a  soubriquet  it  had  gained  at  Bull 
Run,  was  fairly  beaten,  and  that,  too,  by  a  force  without 
a  general  and  of  inferior  numbers.  The  victory  was  so 
complete  that  the  enemy  left  225  dead  on  the  field.  Their 
killed  and  wounded  amounted  to  nearly  900,  while  their 
loss  in  prisoners  was  upward  of  250.  Add  stragglers 
and  deserters  to  these  figures  and  it  will  swell  the  number 
to  about  2,000.  The  Fifth  Virginia  rebel  regiment  was 
nearly  annihilated.  There  was  hardly  sufficient  of  it  left 
to  preserve  its  organization.  The  loss  to  the  Seventh  was 
14  killed  and  51  wounded.  But  few  were  taken  prisoners 
and  those  by  accident. 

(Page  in,   chap.    13.) 

We  reached  Falmouth,  on  the  north  bank  of  the  Rap- 
pahannock  River,  on  the  23d  of  May.  The  corps  of  Mc 
Dowell  was  in  the  immediate  vicinity,  numbering  30,000 
men  and  100  pieces  of  artillery. 

When  we  arrived  on  the  Rappahannock  we  learned 
that  this  force  of  McDowell's,  now  numbering  41,000  men, 
was  ordered  down  to  Richmond,  to  form  a  junction  with 
the  right  wing  of  the  grand  army  under  McClellan.  There 
were  then  only  about  12,000  of  the  enemy  in  front  of 
Fredericksburg.  It  was  about  fifty  miles  to  the  extreme 
right  of  the  army  in  front  of  Richmond. 

On  Saturday  the  President  and  Secretary  of  War  came 
down  for  the  purpose  of  arranging  the  details.  Shields' 
division  was  greatly  in  need  of  shoes  and  clothing,  while 
the  ammunition  for  the  artillery  had  been  condemned, 
and  another  supply,  which  had  been  ordered,  had  been 
very  much  delayed.  It  was,  therefore,  arranged  that  the 
force  should  start  early  on  Monday  morning,  both  the 
President  and  McDowell  being  averse  to  starting  on  Sun 
day. 

That  evening  the  President  and  Secretary  of  War  left 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  221 

for  Washington.  Very  soon  after  General  McDowell  re 
ceived  a  telegram  to  the  effect  that  Jackson  was  making 
a  raid  down  the  Shenandoah  Valley,  with  a  prospect  of 
crushing  the  forces  under  General  Banks.  Soon  after 
this  dispatch  another  arrived  from  the  Secretary  of  War, 
by  order  of  the  President,  containing  instructions  to  send 
a  division  after  Jackson.  Here  was  a  fatal  blow  to  the 
campaign  against  Richmond.  McDowell  promptly  or 
dered  General  Shields'  division  to  move,  and  at  the  same 
time  telegraphed  the  President  that  it  was  a  fatal  blow  to 
them  all. 

Little  things  control  momentous  events.  Jackson's 
army  of  20,000  veterans  checkmated  an  army  of  150,000 
men.  In  defending  Washington  we  lost  Richmond,  but 
Jackson  risked  his  own  communication  to  break  ours. 
Results  more  than  realized  his  expectations.  Without  risk 
there  is  little  gain.  Jackson  adopted  this  adage  into  his 
tactics,  and  endangered  his  army  to  save  it.  Events  proved 
his  sagacity. 

In  time  of  war  the  capital  of  a  country,  unless  far 
removed  from  the  seat  of  war,  is  in  the  way.  The  city 
of  Washington  was  a  fatality.  It  stood  between  the  army 
and  victory.  Jackson  knew  this  and  profited  by  it.  When 
this  general  menaced  Washington  our  army  let  go  its  hold 
on  the  Confederacy,  to  make  it  doubly  safe.  The  cam 
paign  against  Richmond  was  abandoned,  but  Washington 
was  endangered  still.  The  valleys  and  swamps  of  the 
Chickahominy  were  paved  with  the  bodies  of  heroes — 
the  little  rivulets  were  swollen  with  the  best  blood  of  the 
land,  an  army  of  cripples  were  given  to  charity.  And  for 
what?  That  the  city  of  Washington  might  be  safe.  \Vc 
have  since  then  fought  the  ground  over  again  from  Wash 
ington  to  Richmond ;  another  graveyard  has  been  planted, 
and  this  time  for  a  purpose.  Washington  has  been  set 
aside  by  the  new  commander,  and  Richmond  made  the 
objective  point." 

Taylor,  of  the  Confederate  army,  in  his  work,  entitled, 
"Destruction  and  Reconstruction,"  gives  the  following  ac 
count  of  the  battle  of  Port  Republic : 


228 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


The  bridge  was  a  few  yards  below  the  last  house  in 
the  village,  and  some  mist  overhung  the  river.  Under 
cover  of  this  a  small  body  of  horse,  with  one  gun,  from 
Shields'  forces,  had  reached  the  east  end  of  the  bridge  and 
trained  the  gun  on  it.  Jackson  was  within  an  ace  of  cap 
ture.  As  he  spurred  across  the  gun  was  fired  on  him,  but 


!£-**& 


STONEWALL    JACKSON. 


without  effect,  and  the  sound  brought  up  staff  and  escoit, 
when  the  horse  retired  north. 

In  the  evening  we  moved  to  the  river  and  camped. 
Winder's  and  other  brigades  crossed  the  bridge,  and  dur 
ing  the  night  Ewell,  with  most  of  the  army,  drew  near, 
leaving  Trimble's  brigade  and  the  horse  at  Cross  Keys. 
No  one  apprehended  another  advance  by  Fremont.  The 
following"  morning,  Sunday,  June  Qth,  my  command 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  229 

passed  the  bridge,  moved  several  hundred  yards  down  the 
road  and  halted.  Our  trains  had  gone  east  over  the  Blue 
Ridge.  The  sun  appeared  above  the  mountain  while  the 
men  were  quietly  breakfasting.  Suddenly,  from  below, 
was  heard  the  din  of  battle,  loud  and  sustained— artillery 
and  small  arms.  The  men  sprang  into  ranks,  formed  col 
umn  and  marched,  and  I  galloped  forward  a  short  mile  to 
see  the  following  scene  : 

From  the  mountain,  clothed  to  its  base  with  under 
growth  and  timber,  a  level — clear,  open  and  smooth — ex 
tended  to  the  river.  This  plain  was  some  thousand  miles 
in  width.  Half  a  mile  north,  a  gorge,  through  which  flowed 
a  small  stream,  cut  the  mountain  at  a  right  angle.  The 
northern  shoulder  of  this  gorge  projected  farther  into  the 
plain  than  the  southern,  and  on  an  elevated  plateau  of  the 
shoulder  were  placed  six  guns,  sweeping  every  inch  of  the 
plain  to  the  south.  Federal  lines,  their  right  touching  the 
river,  were  advancing  steadily,  with  banners  flying  and 
arms  gleaming  in  the  sun.  A  gallant  show,  they  came 
on  Winder's  and  another  brigade,  with  a  battery,  op 
posed  them. 

This  small  force  was  suffering  cruelly,  and  its  skir 
mishers  were  driven  in  on  their  thin  supporting  line.  As 
my  Irishmen  predicted,  "Shields'  boys  were  after  fighting."" 
Below,  Ewell  was  hurrying  his  men  over  the  bridge,  but  it 
looked  as  if  we  should  be  doubled  up  on  him  ere  he  could 
cross  and  develop  much  strength.  Jackson  was  on  the 
road  a  little  in  advance  of  his  line,  where  the  fire  was 
hottest,  with  reins  on  his  horse's  neck,  seemingly  in  prayer. 
Attracted  by  my  approach,  he  said,  in  his  usual  voice, 
''Delightful  excitement."  I  replied  it  was  pleasant  to  learn 
he  was  enjoying  himself,  but  thought  he  might  have  an 
indigestion  of  such  fun  if  the  six-gun  battery  was  not 
silenced.  He  summoned  a  young  officer  from  his  staff,  and 
pointed  up  the  mountain.  The  head  of  my  approaching 
column  was  turned  short  up  the  slope,  and  speedily  turned 
to  the  path  running  parallel  with  the  river.  We  took  this 
path,  the  guide  leading  the  way.  From  him  I  learned 
that  the  plateau  occupied  by  the  battery  had  been  used 


230  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

for  a  charcoal  kiln,  and  the  path  we  were  following,  made 
by  the  burners  hauling  wood,  came  upon  the  gorge  op 
posite  the  battery.  Moving  briskly,  we  reached  the  hither 
side  a  few  yards  from  the  guns.  Infantry  was  posted  near, 
and  riflemen  were  in  the  undergrowth  on  the  slope  above. 
Our  approach,  masked  by  timber,  was  unexpected.  The 
battery  was  firing  rapidly,  enabled  from  elevation  to  fire 
over  the  advancing  lines.  The  head  of  my  column  began 
to  deploy  under  cover  for  attack,  when  the  sounds  of  bat 
tle  to  our  rear  began  to  recede,  and  a  loud  Federal  cheer 
wras  heard,  proving  Jackson  to  be  hard  pressed.  It  was 
rather  an  anxious  moment,  .demanding  instant  action. 
Leaving  a  staff  officer  to  direct  my  rear  regiment,  the  Sev 
enth,  Colonel  Hays,  to  form  in  the  wood  as  a  reserve,  I 
ordered  the  attack,  though  the  deployment  was  not  com 
pleted,  and  our  rapid  march  by  a  narrow  path  had  occa 
sioned  some  disorder.  With  a  rush  and  shout  the  gorge 
was  passed  and  we  were  in  the  battery.  Surprise  had  aided 
us,  but  the  enemy's  infantry  rallied  in  a  moment  and  drove 
us  out.  We  returned,  to  be  driven  out  a  second  time.  The 
riflemen  on  the  slope  worried  us  no  little,  and  two  com 
panies  of  the  Ninth  Regiment  were  sent  up  the  gorge  to 
gain  ground  above  and  dislodge  them,  which  was  accom 
plished.  The  fighting  in  and  around  the  battery  was  hand- 
to-hand,  and  many  fell  from  bayonet  wounds.  Even  the 
artillerymen  used  their  rammers  in  a  way  not  laid  down  in 
the  manual,  and  died  at  their  guns.  As  Conan  said  to  the 
devil,  "'Twas  claw  for  claw."  I  called  for  Hays,  but  he, 
the  promptest  of  men,  and  his  splendid  regiment,  couM 
not  be  found.  Something  unexpected  had  occurred,  but 
there  was  no  time  for  speculation.  With  a  desperate  rally, 
in  which  I  believe  the  drummer-boys  shared,  we  carried  the 
battery  for  the  third  time,  and  held  it.  Infantry  and  rifle 
men  had  been  driven  off,  and  we  began  to  feel  a  little 
comfortable,  when  the  enemy,  arrested  in  his  advance  by 
our  attack,  appeared.  He  had  countermarched,  and.  with 
left  near  the  river,  came  into  full  view  of  our  situation. 
Wheeling  to  the  right,  with  colors  advanced,  like  a  solid 
wall,  he  marched  straight  upon  us.  There  seemed  nothing 


JMBERLAND 


1BATH 


MARTINSBURG* 


WINCHESTEI 


MooftET/EoM^fM 


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STAUNTON' 


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CHARLOTiTESVIL 


SCALE  OE  MILES 


MAP  OF  OPERATIONS  IN 


232  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

left  but  to  set  our  backs  to  the  mountain  and  die  hard.  At 
the  instant,  crashing  through  the  underwood,  came  Ewell, 
outriding  staff  and  escort.  He  produced  the  effect  of  a 
reinforcement,  and  was  welcomed  with  cheers.  The  line 
before  us  halted  and  threw  forward  skirmishers.  A  mo 
ment  later,  a  shell  came  shrieking  along  it,  loud  Confed 
erate  cheers  reached  our  delighted  ears,  and  Jackson,  freed 
from  his  toils,  rushed  up  like  a  whirlwind,  the  enemy  in 
rapid  retreat.  We  turned  the  captured  guns  on  them  as 
they  passed,  Ewell  serving  as  a  gunner.  Though  rapid,  the 
retreat  never  became  a  rout.  Fortune  had  refused  her 
smiles,  but  Shields'  "brave  boys"  preserved  their  organiza 
tion  and  were  formidable  to  the  last,  and  had  Shields'  him 
self,  with  his  whole  command,  been  on  the  field,  we  should 
Jiave  had  tough  work,  indeed. 

Jackson  came  up,  with  intense  light  in  his  eyes, 
grasped  my  hand,  and  said  the  brigade  should  have  the 
captured  battery.  I  thought  the  men  would  go  mad  with 
cheering,  especially  the  Irishmen. 


SECRETARY    STANTON'S    RECOGNITION. 

The  following  dispatch  was  telegraphed  to  General 
Shields : 

War  Department,  Washington,  March  26,  1862. 

BRIGADIER  GENERAL  SHIELDS:  Your  two  dispatches 
relative  to  the  brilliant  achievement  of  the  forces  under 
your  command  have  been  received.  While  rejoicing  at 
the  success  of  your  gallant  troops,  deep  commiseration 
and  sympathy  are  felt  for  those  who  have  been  victims 
in  the  gallant  and  victorious  contest  with  treason  and 
rebellion.  Your  wounds,  as  well  as  your  success,  prove 
that  Lander's  brave  division  is  still  bravely  led,  ancl  that 
wherever  its  standard  is  displayed  rebels  will  be  routed 
and  pursued. 

To  you  and  the  officers  and  soldiers  under  your  com 
mand  the  department  returns  thanks. 

EDWIN  M.  STANTON,  Secretary  of  War. 


LIFE    OF    GEN.    SHIELDS.  233 

SHIELDS    TO    HIS    SOLDIERS. 
Headquarters   General   Shields'   Division, 

Winchester. 
General  Orders,   No.   n. 

Brigadier-General  Shields  congratulates  the  officers 
and  soldiers  of  his  division  upon  the  glorious  victory 
achieved  by  them  on  the  2^d  instant,  near  Winchester, 
Virginia.  They  defeated  an  enemy  whose  forces  outnum 
bered  theirs  and  who  were  considered  the  bravest  and  best 
disciplined  of  the  Confederate  army. 

He  also  congratulates  them  that  it  has  fallen  to  their 
lot  to  open  the  campaign  on  the  Potomac.  The  opening 
has  been  a  splendid  success.  Let  them  inscribe  "Win 
chester"  on  their  banners  and  prepare  for  other  victories. 

(Signed)  BRIG. -GEN.  SHIELDS. 


CHAPTER     XV. 


Typical  Volunteers  of  1861 — Small  Acorns  Then.  Gigantic  Oaks  Now — 
Renowned  for  Virtue  in  Peace  as  They  Were  for  Bravery  in 
War — Clergyman — Merchant — Judge. 


AUTHOR  OF  "THE  LIFE  OF  FATHER  HECKER." 

Rev.  Walter  Elliott,  author  of  the  "Life  of  Father  Hecker,"  which 
was  the  cause  of  the  Pope's  letter  to  Cardinal  Gibbons  regarding 
certain  ideas  expressed  in  the  book,  had  a  most  adventurous  and 
interesting  career  before  he  joined  the  Paulist  order.  Like  Ignatius 
Loyola,  he  was  a  soldier  and  fought  bravely  and  gallantly  through 
out  the  Civil  War.  He  was  not  a  soldier,  however,  by  profession,  but 
simply  for  love  of  his/  country.  He  always  has  been  an  intense 
American  and  is  a  leader  among  those  who  favor  what  is  known 
as  the  new  American  Catholicism. 

Father  Elliott  was  born  in  1842,  three  months  after  the  death  of 
his  father,  Judge  Robert  Thomas  Elliott  of  Detroit.  The  father 
was  born  in  1796,  in  the  Golden  Vale,  near  the  Rock  of  Cashel, 
Tipperary,  Ireland.  Walter  Elliott  was  sent  to  Notre  Dame  when 
he  was  twelve  years  old.  He  was  graduated  from  there  and  returned 
to  Detroit  to  become  a  partner  with  his  brother  in  the  firm  of  Eagle 
&  Elliott.  He  was  a  strapping  youth,  of  great  stature  and  breadth 
of  frame.  He  stoood  6  feet  3  inches  high.  He  was  of  an  adventurous 
disposition  and  became  discontented  with  a  business  life.  Seized 


234 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


/ 


REV.     WALTER    ELLIOTT. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  235 

with  the  gold  fever,  he  went  to  Pike's  Peak  and  roughed  it  for  some 
time  among  the  miners.  Then  he  went  to  Cincinnati,  where  one  of 
his  brothers  had  located,  entered  the  law  school  and  finished  his 
law  studies  in  the  office  of  Judge  Warner  M.  Bateman.  He  was 
admitted  to  the  bar  a  few  months  prior  to  the  attack  on  Fort  Sumter. 

On  the  call  for  volunteers,  he  enlisted  in  the  Fifth  Ohio,  after 
ward  known  as  the  ''Fighting  Fifth."  He  refused  a  commission, 
saying  that  he  preferred  to  fight  with  the  men  and  not  for  the  glory 
and  honor  of  an  officer's  position.  Three  of  the  Elliott  boys  went 
to  the  war  about  the  same  time,  leaving  one  son  at  home  to  look 
after  the  mother  and  sisters.  He  distinguished  himself  for  bravery 
at  the  battle  of  Port  Republic,  June  9,  1862.  The  rebels  had  cap 
tured  some  Northern  cannon,  and  Elliott,  with  a  band  of  daring 
men  from  the  "Fighting  Fifth,"  undertook  to  recapture  them.  The 
attempt  failed,  and  Elliott  was  made  a  prisoner  and  sent  to  Libby 
Prison.  He  was  exchanged  after  three  months  and  returned  to  his 
regiment.  Later  in  the  war  he  was  also  compelled  to  spend  a  few 
months  in  Andersonville  Prison. 

His  brother,  Captain  William  R.  Elliott,  was  with  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  Stagg  when  that  gallant  officer  saved,  by  timely  action,  Fair 
fax  Court  House  station  and  all  its  valuable  stores  from  Stuart's 
raiders.  Captain  Elliott  joined  in  a  charge  with  Colonel  Stagg  at 
the  battle  of  Gettysburg,  and  when  the  colonel  fell  from  his  horse 
the  captain  took  the  command,  and  was  mortally  wounded.  He  died 
the  following  day.  Another  brother,  Major  Robert  T.  Elliott,  was 
mortally  wounded  while  in  command  of  the  Sixteenth  Michigan 
Infantry  at  Tollopotomy  Creek,  Virginia,  May  13,  1864,  and  died 
of  his  wounds.  The  death  of  the  two  sons  affected  Mrs.  Elliott  so 
deeply  that  at  her  earnest  solicitation,  and  after  having  served  six 
months  over  his  time  of  enlistment,  Walter  Elliott  left  the  army, 
June  20,  1864.  His  discharge  papers  show  that  he  was  in  the  follow 
ing  battles:  Blue  Gap,  January  7,  1862;  Bloomery  Furnace,  Febru 
ary,  1862;  Winchester,  No.  i,  March  23,  1862;  Fort  Republic,  June  9, 
1862;  Chancellorsville,  May,  1863;  Gettysburg,  July,  1863;  Lookout 
Mountain,  November  25,  1863;  Rocky  Faced  Ridge,  May  8,  1864; 
Resaca,  May  15,  1864;  Altoona,  May  25,  1864;  and  Dallas,  May  28, 
1864. 

He  was  offered  a  commission  as  an  inducement  to  stay  in  the 
army,  but  this  he  refused,  as  he  was  too  democratic  in  his  ideas  to 
wish  for  promotion  because  of  his  service  to  the  country.  He  visited 
his  family  at  Detroit,  and  then  took  up  the  law  again  in  Cincinnati. 
It  was  at  a  banquet  given  by  the  bar  of  Detroit  to  Father  Hecker, 
who  was  then  on  a  lecture  tour,  that  he  first  met  the  founder  of  the 
Paulist  community.  He  immediately  determined  to  enter  the  order. 
He  was  the  first  Roman  Catholic,  born  in  the  faith,  to  join  the 
community,  as  his  fellow  Paulists  were  all  converts. 

Father  Elliott  became  the  devoted  friend  and  coworker  of  Father 
Hecker,  entering  into  the  spirit  of  his  ideas  and  spreading  them 
forth  with  the  force  and  vigor  characteristic  of  his  nature.  He  al 
ways  maintained  that  Father  Hecker  was  a  saint.  For  twenty  years 


230  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

he  traveled  on  the  missions  to  non-Catholics  all  over  the  country. 
He  was  reluctantly  withdrawn  from  his  work,  in  which  he  had  be 
come  a  wonderful  power  and  force,  in  order  to  remain  at  the  side 
of  Father  Hecker  during  the  latter's  closing  days.  After  the  death 
of  the  great  Paulist,  Father  Elliott  again  turned  to  the  missions 
and  is  now  engaged  in  the  work  of  converting  non-Catholics.  He 
wrote  the  "Life  of  Father  Hecker/'  and  every  line  of  the  book  shows 
his  thorough  insight  into  the  character  of  the  famous  Paulist.  The 
French  translation  was  to  blame  for  the  mild  condemnation  of  the 
Pope.  Many  of  the  ideas  were  misconstrued  or  misunderstood, 
for  there  is  no  American  priest  more  devoted  to  the  Roman  Catholic 
church  than  is  Father  Elliott. 

Lieutenant-Colonel  Frank  Sawyer  of  the  8th  Ohio 
Infantry,  in  1880  wrote  its  regimental  history.  In  it  I 
find  the  following:  "Shields  censured  Colonel  Sprigg  Car 
roll  for  not  burning  the  bridge  at  Port  Republic,  which 
enabled  Jackson  to  escape.  Shields  fell  into-  disgrace  in 
consequence  of  Jackson's  success,  was  soon  relieved  from 
command  and  was  not  again  heard  of  during  the  war." 

"Colonel  Carroll  was  nominated  Brigadier-General 
about  May  25,  1862,  and  given  command  of  a  brigade, 
but  was  not  confirmed  until  May  12,  1864,  after  fighting 
bravely  at  Gettysburg  and  elsewhere." 

Reid,  in  "Ohio  in  the  War,"  says  Shields  marched 
his  army  132  miles  from  May  I2th  to  May  2ist,  when 
they  arrived  at  Fredericksburg  footsore,  ragged  and  dirty, 
throwing  themselves  on  the  ground  for  a  night's  rest. 
Next  clay  Lincoln  ordered  them  to  pass  in  review  before 
him,  so  that  he  could  see  "the  men  who  whipped  Stone 
wall  Jackson  and  drove  him  out  of  the  Shenandoah 
Valley." 

As  soon  as  Jackson  found  Shields  had  left  it  he  re- 
entered  it  and  drove  Banks  out  of  it,  he  making,  it  is  said, 
forty  miles  in  one  day.  Shields,  with  but  a  day  or  two 
of  rest,  was  started  back  to  the  valley,  to  which  he  made 
rapid  strides,  without  tents  and  allowing  only  eight  bag 
gage  wagons  to  a  regiment. 

The  Third  and  Fourth  Brigades  of  Shields' division,  by 
forced  marches,  reached  a  point  opposite  Port  Republic, 
where  the  advance  under  Colonel  Carroll  was  driven  back 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  237 

and  prevented  from  occupying  the  town  or  destroying  the 
bridge  across  the  Shenandoah,  as  directed. 

"By  the  time  General  Tyler  came  up  the  rebel  gen 
eral  had  arranged  a  heavy  force  to  meet  him.  At  five 
o'clock  the  next  morning  Jackson  commenced  the  as 
sault,  and  was  promptly  met  by  the  national  forces  with 
a  resistance  that  would  have  done  credit  to  an  army  of 
ten  thousand  men.  The  Seventh,  in  connection  with  the 
Fifth  Ohio,  bore  the  brunt  of  the  fight  and  became  the 
rallying  center  of  the  battle.  These  two  regiments  fought 
splendidly  and  effectively.  General  Tyler,  taking  advan- 
age  of  a  wheatfield  near  the  enemy's  center,  extended 
his  lines  from  hill  to  river,  and  double-quicked  the  Fifth 
and  Seventh  from  point  to  point  along  the  line,  under 
cover  of  some  standing  wheat,  halting  at  intermediate 
points  to  deliver  a  galling  fire.  This  was  kept  up  for 
five  long  hours,  and,  with  less  than  3,000  muskets,  the 
national  forces  repelled  Jackson,  with  14,000  veteran 
rebel  troops. 

"The  Fifth  Ohio,  on  the  22d  of  March,  1862,  went 
through  Winchester  on  the  double-quick,  cheering  and 
eager  for  the  fight.  Some  slight  cannonading  occurred 
that  afternoon,  during  which  General  Shields  was  wounded 
in  the  arm.  On  the  morning  of  the  23d  of  March  the 
Fifth  marched  out  to  Kernstown,  four  miles  from  Win 
chester,  and  took  position  in  support  of  Damn's  Indiana 
Battery.  At  nine  o'clock  a.  m.  the  battle  of  Winchester 
was  opened.  The  Fifth  continued  in  support  of  Damn's 
battery  until  late  in  the  afternoon,  when  companies  A, 
B,  C,  D  and  E,  under  command  of  Colonel  Kilpatrick, 
moved  up,  under  orders,  and  passing  through  a  clump  of 
underbrush  emerged  into  an  open  field,  where  it  received 
the  first  fire  of  the  enemy.  This  little  band,  although 
faced  by  overwhelming  numbers,  returned  the  rebel  fire 
with  interest.  The  Eighty-Fourth  Pennsylvania,  on  its 
right,  attempted  to  follow,  but  quailed  and  fell  back  in 
disorder.  Colonel  Murray  of  that  regiment,  in  attempt 
ing  to  rally  them,  lost  his  life.  The  Fifth  Ohio  poured 
its  volleys  into  the  enemy  at  short  range  and  stubbornly 


238  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

maintained  its  position  until  reinforcements  came  up. 
It  then  advanced  and  drove  the  enemy  in  disorder.  In 
this  fierce  encounter  five  of  the  color  bearers  of  the  regi 
ment  were  shot  down  in  succession.  Captain  George  B. 
Whitcom  of  Cincinnati  was  one  of  these  and  lost  his  life 
while  waving  the  colors  over  his  head. 

"When  the  Eighty-Fourth  Pennsylvania  fell  back  in 
confusion  General  Sullivan,  commanding  the  brigade,  ex 
claimed  that  the  army  was  whipped ;  but  on  looking  again 
observed  the  Fifth  Ohio  still  fighting,  and  exclaimed : 
'No,  thank  God;  the  brave  Fifth  Ohio  is  still  standing 
its  ground  and  holding  the  rebels.' 

"The  Fourteenth  Indiana  moved  forward  at  this  crit 
ical  moment  and  the  tide  was  turned.  The  enemy,  beaten 
at  all  points,  turned  and  fled.  The  darkness  of  the  night 
alone  prevented  the  most  vigorous  pursuit.  The  loss  of 
the  Fifth  Ohio  was  forty-seven  killed  and  wounded.  The 
entire  loss  of  the  national  force  did  not  exceed  five  hun 
dred.  The  rebel  loss  \vas  believed  to  be  more  than  double 
that  number.  The  regimental  colors  were  perforated  with 
forty-eight  bullet  holes  and  the  state  flag  with  ten." 

Robert  D.  McCarter's  biography  was  kindly  furnished  me  by  a 
friend.  Unfortunately,  it  has  been  lost  and  I  must  write  from  memory. 
He  was  the  first  three-year  volunteer  in  Ohio,  and  was  not  eighteen 
when  at  Winchester,  he,  with  a  troop  of  wagons,  fed  the  Federal 
troops  on  the  night  of  the  battle  of  Winchester.  His  superior  being 
ill,  he  took  the  provisions  without  requisition,  and  was  between  the 
sentries  of  both  armies  in  the  darkness  when  halted.  It  required 
an  act  of  Congress  to  adjust  the  quartermaster's  accounts,  owing 
to  young  McCarter's  forced  requisition.  He  fought  in  a  dozen  battles 
valiantly,  and  for  over  a  quarter  of  a  century  has  been  the  most 
trusted  agent  and  partner  of  Green,  Joyce  &  Co.,  the  wholesale  dry 
goods  merchants  of  Columbus,  Ohio.  For  his  efforts  in  behalf  of 
war  veterans,  he  was  recently  given  a  very  expensive  gold  medal, 
studded  with  diamonds  and  rich  in  expressions  of  admiration.  He 
is  a  noble  type  of  the  American  volunteer.  I  am  under  many  obliga 
tions  to  him  and  his  son,  E.  B.  McCarter,  an  able  lawyer  of  Columbus. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


239 


\ 


w 


240 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


-Lack  of  space  denies  me  the  pleasure  of  laying  before  the  reader 
Judge  Voris'  account  of  the  battle  of  Winchester,  which  has  been 
published  as  the  battle  of  The  Boys.  It  is  very  intersting.  While 
the  Colonel  was  judge  of  the  Circuit  Court  of  Akron,  Ohio,  years 
ago,  I  corresponded  with  him  in  reference  to  Colonel  Carroll's  failure 
to  burn  the  bridge  at  Port  Republic,  after  he  had  put  the  combustibles 
on  it  for  that  purpose,  instead  of  crossing  it  and  attacking  what 


COL.   VORIS  OF  6yTH  OHIO  AT  WINCHESTER. 


he  supposed  was  a  small  force,  suffering  defeat,  which  prevented  him 
from  destroying  the  bridge,  and  afforded  an  avenue  of  escape  for 
Stonewall  Jackson.  The  judge,  like  all  other  Ohioans,  loth  to 
censure  the  colonel  of  another  Ohio  regiment,  said  that  there  was 
a  conflict  of  evidence  as  to  whether  the  order  to  burn  was  peremptory, 
but  that  there  was  a  concurrence  of  opinion  that  it  was  within  his 
discretion  to  have  destroyed  it,  and,  as  events  proved,  it  would  have 
been  wise  to  have  burned  it.  Military  judgment  and  discretion  are 
as  necessary  as  judicial  discretion. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  241 


CHAPTER     XVI. 


Stanton  Reviled  Lincoln  and  Then  Accepted  Office  from  Him — His 
Injustice  to  Shields — Duplicity  with  McClellan  and  Unwar 
ranted  Reflections  upon  Sherman. 


There  is  no  hesitancy  or  doubt  in  my  mind  that  Ed 
win  M.  Stanton,  a  member  of  Buchanan's  and  Lincoln's 
Cabinet,  was  very  unjust  in  his  treatment  of  General  Shields 
and  many  other  great  generals  of  the  Civil  War.  I  have 
been  assured  orally  and  by  letter  by  the  General's  widow 
and  his  sons  and  daughters  that  Stanton,  to  use  their  lan 
guage,  "cheated  the  General  out  of  three  months'  pay." 

James  Shields,  of  the  firm  of  Shields  Brothers,  silk 
mercers,  at  Dungannon,  in  the  county  of  Tyrone,  Ireland, 
an  excellent  business  man,  as  well-  as  a  scholar,  corrob 
orates  this  charge  against  Stanton.  This  silk  merchant, 
in  his  youth,  spent  several  years  with  the  General  on  his 
farm  near  Carrollton,  Missouri,  and  was  on  the  most  inti 
mate  terms  with  his  host.  I  am  at  a  loss  for  words  with 
which  to  adequately  express  my  gratitude  to  this  gentle 
man  for  the  information  that  he  has  kindly  furnished  me 
about  the  General. 

His  cousin,  Shields,  a  leading  contractor  of  St.  Paul, 
Minnesota,  has  also  shown  his  good  will  by  furnishing 
me  with  all  the  information  that  he  possessed  in  regard 
to  his  illustrious  uncle.  These  gentlemen  seem  to  know 
much  more  about  the  General  than  all  others  that  I  am 
acquainted  with,  and  have  freely  laid  their  treasures  at 
my  feet,  for  which  I  am  very  thankful. 

That  Stanton  was  a  man  of  poor  judgment,  cruel  and 
harsh,  as  well  as  unjust  in  his  criticism,  even  Gorham,  his 
biographer  and  apologist,  is  obliged  to  concede.  In  fact, 

16 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

the  gentleman's  book,  entitled  "The  Life  and  Public  Serv 
ices  of  Edwin  M.  Stanton,"  is  a  misnomer,  so  far  as  over 
one-half  of  the  first  volume  is  concerned.  That  portion 
might  well  have  been  entitled  "A  Diatribe  Against  Mc- 
Clellan  and  Halleck." 

Much  of  Gorham's  work  is  filled  with  his  vain  attempts 
to  palliate  or  excuse  Stanton' s  unwarranted  abuse  and  vil 
ification  of  nearly  every  prominent  man  whose  misfor 
tune  it  W7as  to  have  had  anything  to  do  with  this  self-suf 
ficient  and  domineering  head  of  the  War  Department  un 
der  Lincoln. 

Gentlemen,  like  poets,  are  born,  not  made.  Proper 
consideration  for  the  rights  of  others,  and  a  sprinkling  of 
self-sacrifice  are  required  of  those  wrho  aspire  to  be  gentle 
men.  That  Stanton  failed  in  these  prerequisites  is  proven 
by  his  treatment  of  Lincoln. 

In  Herndoirs  life  of  the  great  President,  he  details 
the  rude,  unkind  and  discourteous  manner  in  which  Stan- 
ton  treated  Lincoln  in  1857,  when  they  were  associate 
counsel  in  the  celebrated  McCormick  patent  case.  His 
treatment  is  characterized  by  the  author  referred  to  as 
''brutal  rudeness."  Lincoln,  with  the  fond  hope  of  mak 
ing  fame  in  a  forensic  contest  with  Reverdy  Johnson,  one 
of  the  opposing  counsel,  went  East  to  try  the  case,  with 
Stanton  and  others  as  associate  counsel,  but  was  pushed 
aside,  ignored  and  humiliated  by  Stanton,  whom  he  over 
heard  ask  "where  did  that  long-armed  creature  come  from, 
and  what  did  he  expect  to  do  in  this  case?"  Stanton  is 
said  to  have  described  Lincoln  then  as  a  long-lanked  crea 
ture  from  Illinois,  wearing  a  dirty  linen  duster  for  a  coat, 
on  the  back  of  which  the  perspiration  had  splotched  stains 
that  resembled  the  map  of  the  continent.  Lincoln,  on 
his  return  to  Springfield,  remarked  that  he  had  been 
"roughly  handled  by  that  man  Stanton." 

During  the  early  months  of  Lincoln's  adminis 
tration  Stanton's  letters  to  ex-President  Buchanan  ex 
hibit  a  thorough  distrust  of  the  capacity  of  President 
Lincoln  and  his  advisers,  such  great  statesmen  as  Wil 
liam  H.  Seward,  Salmon  P.  Chase  and  others,  to  cope 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  243 

with  the  emergency.  April  3,  1861,  he  wrote  Buchanan 
"that  the  month  of  administration  seems  to  have  furnished 
an  ample  vindication  of  your  policy,  and  to  have  rendered 
all  occasion  of  other  defense  (of  Fort  Sumter)  needless. 
He  wrote  further  that  he  didn't  believe  a  word  of  the 
rumor  that  an  effort  would  be  made  to  reinforce  Fort 
Sumter."  On  April  u  he  continued:  "The  administra 
tion  has  not  acquired  the  respect  and  confidence  of  the 
people  here.  The  Cabinet  act  as  though  they  would  cut 
and  run  at  a  minute's  notice,  they  betray  so  much  inse 
curity,  and,  besides,  a  strong  feeling  of  distrust  in  the  can 
dor  and  sincerity  of  President  Lincoln  and  of  his  Cabinet 
has  sprung  up.  No  one  speaks  of  Lincoln,  or  any  member 
of  his  Cabinet,  with  any  respect  or  regard."  April  I2th 
he  predicted  that  Jefferson  Davis  would  be  in  possession 
of  Washington  in  thirty  days.  June  8th  he  wrote  the  ex- 
president,  as  follows:  "Indeed,  the  course  of  things  for 
the  last  four  weeks  has  been  such  as  to  excite  distrust  in 
every  department  of  the  government.  The  military  move 
ments,  or  rather  inaction,  also  excite  great  apprehension. 
After  a  few  Democratic  appointments,  as  Butler  and  Dix, 
everything  here  has  been  devoted  to  black  Republican 
interests."  He  wrote  to  General  Dix,  on  June  nth,  that 
"no  one  can  imagine  the  deplorable  condition  of  this  city, 
and  the  hazard  of  the  government,  who  did  not  witness 
the  weakness  and  panic  of  the  administration  and  the  pain 
ful  imbecility  of  Lincoln.  Millions  of  New  York  and 
perhaps  lives  of  thousands  of  patriotic  citizens  will  be 
wanted  to  gorge  the  ravenous  crew  that  surrounds  the 
War  Department.  Every  day  affords  fresh  proof  of  the 
design  to  give  the  war  a  party  direction.  The  army  ap 
pointments  appear  (with  two  or  three  exceptions  only)  to 
be  bestowed  on  persons  whose  only  claim  is  their  Repub 
licanism,  broken-down  politicians  without  experience,  abil 
ity  or  merit.  Democrats  are  rudely  repelled  or  scowled 
upon  with  jealous  and  ill-concealed  aversion.  Between 
the  corruption  of  some  of  the  Republican  leaders,  the  self- 
seeking  ambition  of  others,  some  great  disaster  seems  cer 
tain  to  befall  the  nation."  After  the  battle  of  Bull  Run, 


244  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

Stanton  wrote  to  his  brother-in-law,  Willcott,  whom  he 
soon  thereafter  appointed  his  assistant:  "If  our  people 
can  bear  with  its  Cabinet,  they  will  be  able  to  support  a 
great  many  disasters."  In  writing  to  Buchanan,  July  26th, 
five  days  after  the  battle  of  Bull  Run,  he  said :  "The  im 
becility  of  this  administration  culminated  in  that  catas 
trophe  (referring  to  the  battle),  and  irretrievable  misfor 
tune  and  national  disgrace,  never  to  be  forgotten,  are  to  be 
added  to  the  ruin  of  all  peaceful  pursuits,  and  national 
bankruptcy,  as  a  result  of  Lincoln's  running  the  machine 
for  five  months.  It  is  not  unlikely  that  some  changes  in 
the  war  and  navy  departments  may  take  place,  but  none 
beyond  these  two  departments,  until  "Jeff  Davis  turns  out 
the  whole  concern."  He  wrote  further,  "that  Scott's  jeal 
ousy,  Cabinet  intrigues  and  Republican  interference  might 
thwart  McClellan  at  every  step." 

His  apologetic  biographer  admits  that  Stanton,  in  pri 
vate  letters,  gave  vent  to  his  total  want  of  respect  for  Mr. 
Lincoln  and  his  administration  at  that  time. 

Stanton  never  met  President  Lincoln  between  March 
4,  1 86 1,  and  January  15,  1862,  when  Stanton  accepted 
his  commission  as  Secretary  of  War.  Before  doing  so 
he  consulted  with  General  McClellan,  who  advised  him 
to  accept.  Those  who  have  read  Herndon's  unmuti- 
lated  real  life  of  Lincoln,  which  is  in  three  volumes,  will  re 
call  the  manner  in  which  Stanton  treated  Lincoln  at  Cin 
cinnati,  when  they  were  associate  counsel  in  a  celebrated 
case  years  before  the  war.  No  gentleman  would  have 
said  and  done  what  Stanton  is  reported  to  have  said  and 
done  on  that  occasion. 

A  college  president,  and  an  educator  of  renown,  in 
writing  of  the  men  of  those  days,  said :  "It  is  a  matter  of 
history  that  Secretary  Stanton  did  not  get  along  very  well 
with  General  McClellan.  McClellan  himself  always  in 
sisted  that  the  failure  of  his  'peninsular  campaign'  was  due 
to  rather  underhanded  work  at  the  war  office,  and  thai 
the  secretary  induced  the  President  to  withhold  promised 
reinforcements  after  the  army  had  been  led  into  such  a 
position  that  without  reinforcements  complete  success 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  245 

would  be  impossible.  Whether  McClellan's  view  of  the 
situation  was  correct  or  not,  certain  it  is  that  Mr.  Stan- 
ton,  after  the  general's  star  began  to  decline,  could  never 
find  any  use  for  'Little  Mac.'  After  McClellan  was  re 
moved  from  command  the  secretary  would  never  consent 
to  recall  him  to  the  field.  Although  McClellan  was  more 
popular  with  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  than  any  other 
man  who  ever  led  that  splendid  body,  although  many  army 
officers  urged  McClellan's  restoration,  although  General 
Grant  desired,  and  Lincoln  himself  is  said  to  have  wished 
it,  Stanton  opposed  bitterly  all  efforts  to  place  the  fallen 
general  in  command  again,  and  succeeded  in  having  his 
will  in  the  matter." 

In  McClellan's  own  story,  page  149,  he  says:  "I 
have  already  stated  in  a  general  way  what  occurred  between 
myself  and  some  of  the  radical  leaders  shortly  after  I 
reached  Washington.  They  then  saw  clearly  that  it  would 
not  be  possible  to  make  a  party  tool  of  me,  and  soon  con 
cluded  that  it  was  their  policy  to  ruin  me  if  possible.  They 
therefore  determined  to  ruin  me  in  any  event  and  by  any 
means — first,  by  endeavoring  to  force  me  into  premature 
movements,  knowing  that  a  failure  would  probably  end  my 
military  career;  afterward  by  withholding  the  means  neces 
sary  to  achieve  success.  I  do  not  base  my  assertions  as  to 
the  motives  of  the  radical  leaders  upon  mere  surmises,  but 
upon  facts  that  have  frequently  come  to  my  knowledge 
during  the  war  and  since.  For  instance,  Major  Charles 
Davies,  once  professor  of  mathematics  at  West  Point,  told 
me,  and  at  a  different  time  told  General  Joseph  E.  John 
ston,  the  following  story : 

"He  said  that  during  the  very  early  part  of  the  penin 
sular  campaign  he  was  one  of  a  commission  sent  from  New 
York  to  urge  more  vigorous  action  in  supporting  me. 
They  called  upon  the  President,  and  found  Mr.  Stanton 
with  him.  In  reply  to  their  statement  of  the  purpose  of 
their  visit,  Mr.  Stanton  stated  that  the  great  end  and  aim 
of  the  war  were  to  abolish  slavery.  To  end  the  war  before 
the  nation  was  ready  for  that  would  be  a  failure.  The  war 
must  be  prolonged  and  conducted  so  as  to  achieve  that. 


24(5  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

That  the  people  of  the  North  were  not  yet  ready  to  ac 
cept  that  view,  and  that  it  would  not  answer  to  permit  me 
to  succeed  until  the  people  had  been  worked  up  to  the 
proper  pitch  on  that  question.  That  the  war  would  not 
be  finished  until  that  result  was  reached,  and  that,  there 
fore,  it  was  not  their  policy  to  strengthen  General  McClel- 
lan,  so  as  to  insure  his  success. 

"I  have  heard  from  the  best  authority  many  instances 
in  which  the  same  views  were  expressed  by  other  promi 
nent  radical  leaders.  Under  date  of  April  7,  1862,  Gen 
eral  Franklin,  in  a  letter  informing  me  of  the  circumstances 
attending  the  withholding  of  McDowell's  corps,  of  which 
his  division  was  formed,  writes:  'McDowell  told  me  that 
it  was  intended  for  a  blow  at  you ;  that  Stanton  had  said 
that  you  intended  to  work  by  strategy  and  not  by  fight 
ing;  that  all  of  the  opponents  of  the  policy  of  the  adminis 
tration  centered  around  you ;  in  other  words,  that  you  had 
political  aspirations.  There  was  no  friend  of  yours  pres 
ent  to  contradict  these  statements,  of  course.' 

"From  the  light  that  has  since  been  thrown  on  Stan- 
ton's  character,  I  am  satisfied  that  from  an  early  date  he 
was  in  this  treasonable  conspiracy,  and  that  his  course  in 
ingratiating  himself  with  me,  and  pretending  to  be  my 
friend  before  he  was  in  office,  was  only  a  part  of  his  long 
system  of  treachery. 

"Judge  Black's  papers  in  the  Galaxy  showed  the 
character  of  the  man  and  it  is  somewhat  singular  that  the 
judge  began  the  papers  for  the  purpose  of  vindicating 
Stanton,  but  that,  as  he  proceeded,  he  became  enlight 
ened  as  to  what  the  man  really  was. 

"I  had  never  seen  Mr.  Stanton,  and  probably  had  not 
even  heard  of  him,  before  reaching  Washington  in  1861. 
Not  many  weeks  after  arriving  I  was  introduced  to  him 
as  a  safe  adviser  on  legal  points.  From  that  moment  he 
did  his  best  to  ingratiate  himself  with  me,  and  professed 
the  warmest  friendship  and  devotion.  I  had  no  reason 
to  suspect  his  sincerity,  and  therefore  believed  him  to  be 
what  he  professed.  The  most  disagreeable  thing  about 
him  was  the  extreme  virulence  with  which  he  abused  the 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  241 

President,  the  administration  and  the  Republican  party. 
He  carried  this  to  such  an  extent  that  I  was  often  shocked 
by  it.  He  never  spoke  of  the  President  in  any  other  way 
than  as  the  'original  gorilla,'  and  often  said  that  Du  Chaillu 
was  a  fool  to  wander  all  the  way  to  Africa  in  search  of 
what  he  could  so  easily  have  found  in  Springfield,  Illinois. 
Nothing  could  be  more  bitter  than  his  words  and  manner 
always  were  when  speaking  of  the  administration  of  the 
Republican  party.  He  never  gave  them  credit  for  honesty 
or  patriotism,  and  very  seldom  for  any  ability. 

"At  some  time  during  the  autumn  of  1861  Secretary 
Cameron  made  quite  an  abolition  speech  to  some  newly- 
arrived  regiment.  Next  clay  Stanton  urged  me  to  arrest 
him  for  inciting  to  insubordination.  He  often  advocated 
the  propriety  of  my  seizing  the  government  and  taking 
affairs  into  my  own  hands. 

"One  day  he  told  me  that  he  had  been  appointed 
Secretary  of  War,  and  that  his  name  had  been  sent  to  the 
Senate  for  confirmation,  and  that  he  had  called  to  confer 
with  me  as  to  his  acceptance.  He  said  that  acceptance 
would  involve  very  great  personal  sacrifices  on  his  part, 
and  that  the  only  possible  inducement  would  be  that  he 
might  have  it  in  his  power  to  aid  me  in  the  work  of  put 
ting  down  the  rebellion ;  that  he  was  willing  to  devote  all 
his  time,  intellect  and  energy  to  my  assistance,  and  that 
together  we  could  soon  bring  the  war  to  an  end.  If  I 
wished  him  to  accept  he  would  do  so,  but  only  on  my  ac 
count  ;  that  he  had  come  to  know  my  wishes  and  determine 
accordingly.  I  told  him  that  I  hoped  he  would  accept  the 
position. 

"Soon  after  Mr.  Stanton  became  Secretary  of  War  it 
became  clear  that,  without  any  reason  known  to  me,  our 
relations  had  completely  changed.  Instead  of  using  his 
new  position  to  assist  me,  he  threw  every  obstacle  in  my 
way,  and  did  all  in  his  power  to  create  difficulty  and  dis 
trust  between  the  President  and  myself.  I  soon  found  it 
impossible  to  gain  access  to  him.  Before  he  was  in  office 
he  constantly  ran  after  me  and  professed  the  most  ardent 
friendship;  as  soon  as  he  became  Secretary  of  Wrar  his 


248  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

whole  manner  changed,  and  I  could  no  longer  find  the 
opportunity  to  transact  even  the  ordinary  current  business 
of  the  office  with  him.  It  is  now  very  clear  to  me  that, 
far  from  being  as  he  had  always  represented  himself  to  me, 
in  direct  and  violent  opposition  to  the  radicals,  he  was 
really  in  secret  alliance  with  them,  and  that  he  and  they 
were  alike  unwilling  that  I  should  be  successful.  No  other 
theory  can  possibly  account  for  his  and  their  course,  and 
on  that  theory  everything  becomes  clear  and  easily  ex 
plained.  Nor  did  I  at  that  time  fully  realize  the  length 
to  which  these  men  were  prepared  to  go>  in  carrying  out 
their  schemes.  For  instance,  I  did  not  suspect,  until  the 
orders  reached  me,  that  Fort  Monroe  and  the  First  Corps 
would  be  withdrawn  from  my  control,  and  when  those 
orders  arrived  they  found  me  too  far  committed  to  permit 
me  to  withdraw  with  honor.  With  the  troops  under  fire 
it  did  not  become  me  to  offer  my  resignation. 

"As  before  stated,  when  Stanton  was  made  Secretary 
of  War  I  knew  nothing  of  the  matter  until  the  nomination 
had  already  gone  to  the  Senate.  Next  day  the  President 
came  to  my  house  to  apologize  for  not  consulting  me  on 
the  subject.  He  said  that  he  knew  Stanton  to  be  a  friend 
of  mine,  and  assumed  that  I  would  be  glad  to  have  him 
Secretary  of  W^ar,  and  that  he  feared  that  if  he  told  me  be 
forehand  'some  of  those  fellows'  would  say  that  I  had 
dragooned  him  into  it. 

"Had  General  McDowell  joined  me  by  water  I  could 
have  approached  Richmond  by  the  James,  and  thus  have 
avoided  the  delay's  and  losses  incurred  by  bridging  the 
Chickahominy,  and  could  have  had  the  army  united  in 
one  body,  instead  of  being  necessarily  divided  by  that 
stream.  McDowell's  movement  would  not  have  jeopar 
dized  Washington  in  the  slightest  degree.  There  were 
troops  enough  without  him  to  hold  the  works  of  anything 
that  the  enemy  could  have  sent  against  them,  and  the  more 
they  sent  the  easier  would  my  task  have  been  in  front  of 
Richmond.  But  Jackson's  movement  was  merely  a  feint, 
and  if  McDowell  had  joined  me  on  the  James  the  enemy 
would  have  drawn  in  every  available  man  from  every  quar- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  249 

ter  to  make  head  against  me.  A  little  of  the  nerve  at 
Washington  which  the  Romans  displayed  during  the  cam 
paign  against  Hannibal  would  have  settled  the  fate  of 
Richmond  in  a  very  few  weeks." 

Mr.  Gideon  Welles,  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  in  the  Cabi 
net  with  Mr.  Stanton,  in  his  work,  "Lincoln  and  Seward." 
New  York,  1874,  says  (page  190):  "With  the  change  in 
the  War  Department  in  January,  1862,  came  the  hostility 
of  Secretary  Stanton  to  McClellan,  then  general-in-chief." 

P.  191 :  "The  unwise  letter  (the  Harrison  bar  letter) 
led  to  Halleck,  a  vastly  inferior  man,  being  sent  to  Wash 
ington. 

On  coming  to'  Washington,  Pope,  who 

was  ardent,  and,  I  think,  courageous,  though  not  always 
discreet,  very  naturally  fell  into  the  views  of  Secretary 
Stanton,  who  improved  every  opportunity  to  denounce 
McClellan  and  his  hesitating  policy.  Pope  also  recipro 
cated  the  commendations  bestowed  on  him  by  Halleck,  by 
uniting  with  Stanton  and  General  Scott  in  advising  that 
McClellan  should  be  superseded  and  Halleck  placed  in 
charge  of  military  affairs  at  Washington.  This,  combined 
with  the  movements  and  the  disasters  before  Richmond, 
and  his  own  imprudent  letter,  enabled  Stanton  to  get  rid 
of  McClellan  at  headquarters." 

P.  193  :  "But  Pope  was  defeated,  and  the  army,  sadly 
demoralized,  came  retreating  to  the  Potomac.  The  War 
Department,  and  especially  Stanton  and  Halleck,  became 
greatly  alarmed.  On  the  3Oth  of  August,  in  the  midst 
of  these  disasters,  and  before  the  result  had  reached  us, 
though  most  damaging  information  in  regard  to  McClel 
lan,  who  lingered  at  Alexandria,  was  current,  the  Secre 
tary  of  the  Treasury,  Mr.  Chase,  called  upon  me  with  a 
protest,  signed  by  himself  and  Stanton,  denouncing  the 
conduct  of  McClellan,  and  demanding  his  immediate  dis 
missal.  Two  other  members  were  ready  to  append  their 
names  after  mine.  I  declined  to  sign  the  paper,  which 
was  in  the  handwriting  of  Stanton — not  that  I  did  not  dis 
approve  of  the  course  of  the  general,  but  because  the 
combination  was  improper  and  disrespectful  to  the  Presi- 


^50  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

dent.  I  had  doubted  the  wisdom  of  recalling  the  army  of 
the  Potomac  from  Richmond,  therein  differing  from  Chase 
and  Stanton.  The  object  in  bringing  that  army  back  to 
Washington,  in  order  to  start  a  new  march  overland  and 
regain  the  abandoned  position,  I  did  not  understand,  unless 

it  was  to  get  rid  of  McClellan The  President 

never  knew  of  this  paper,  but  was  not  unaware  of  the 
popular  feeling  against  that  officer,  in  which  he  sympa 
thized,  and  of  the  sentiments  of  the  members  of  the  Cabi 
net,  aggravated  by  the  hostility  and  strong,  if  not  'exag 
gerated,  rumors  sent  out  by  the  Secretary  of  War.  Both 
Stanton  and  Halleck  were,  however,  filled  with  apprehen 
sions  beyond  others,  as  the  army  of  stragglers  and  broken 
battalions,  on  the  last  of  August  and  first  of  September, 
came  rushing  toward  Washington.'' 

After  Pope's  defeat,  Mr.  Chase  says :  "The  President 
himself  gave  the  command  of  the  fortifications  and  the 
troops  for  the  defense  of  Washington  to  McClellan.  It 
was  against  my  protest  and  that  of  the  Secretary  of  War." 
(Ibid.,  p.  450.) 

Mr.  Gideon  Welles,  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  in  his 
book,  "Lincoln  and  Seward,"  New  York,  1874,  page  194, 
says : 

"At  the  stated  Cabinet  meeting  on  Tuesday,  the  2d  of 
September,  while  the  whole  community  was  stirred  up  and 
in  confusion,  and  affairs  were  growing  bad  beyond  any 
thing  that  had  previously  occurred.  Stanton  entered  the 
council  room  a  few  moments  in  advance  of  Mr.  Lincoln, 
and  said,  with  great  excitement,  he  had  just  learned  from 
General  Halleck  that  the  President  had  placed  McClellan 
in  command  of  the  forces  in  Washington.  The  information 
was  surprising,  and,  in  view  of  the  prevailing  excitement 
against  that  officer,  alarming.  The  President  soon  came 
in,  and  in  answer  to  an  inquiry  from  Mr.  Chase,  confirmed 
what  Stanton  had  stated.  General  regret  was  expressed, 
and  Stanton,  with  some  feeling,  remarked  that  no  order 
to  that  effect  had  issued  from  the  War  Department.  The 
President,  calmly,  but  with  some  emphasis,  said  the  order 
was  his,  and  he  would  be  responsible  for  it  to  the  country. 
Before  separating,  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  expressed 
his  apprehension  that  the  reinstatement  of  McClellan 
would  prove  a  national  calamity." 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  251 

Mr.  Montgomery  Blair,  Postmaster-General,  in  pri 
vate  letters,  from  which,  now  in  the  hands  of  the  editor, 
the  following  extracts  are  taken,  says: 

Under  date  April  22,  1870:    'The  bitterness  of  Stan- 
ton  on  the  reinstatement  of  McClellan  you  can  scarcely 
conceive.     He  preferred  to  see  the  capital  fall. 
McClellan  was  bound  to  go  when  the  emergency  was  past, 
and  Halleck  and  Stanton  furnished  a  pretense." 

Under  date  April  3,  1879:  "The  folly  and  disregard 
of  public  interests  thus  exhibited  would  be  incredible  but 
that  the  authors  of  this  intrigue,  Messrs.  Stanton  and 
Chase,  when  the  result  of  it  came,  and  I  proposed  the  res 
toration  of  McClellan  to  command,  and  to  prevent  the 
completion  of  ruin  by  the  fall  of  this  capital,  actually  de 
clared  that  they  would  prefer  the  loss  of  the  capital  to 
the  restoration  of  McClellan  to  command.  Yet  these  are 
the  men  who  have  been  accounted  by  a  large  portion  of 
our  countrymen  as  the  civil  heroes  of  the  war,  whilst  Mc 
Clellan,  who  saved  the  capital,  was  dismissed." 

I  shall  not  refer  at  length  to  Stanton's  treatment  of 
Halleck.  It  appears  from  Stanton's  life  that  he  handled 
Halleck  without  gloves,  and  no  doubt  that  general's  biog 
rapher  has  painted  Stanton  in  his  true  colors  in  return  for 
injuries  sustained  without  warrant. 

If  there  is  one  name  dearer  than  another  among  those 
of  the  great  generals  of  the  Civil  War  it  is  that  of  the 
magnetic  Sherman,  whose  march  to  the  sea  is  said  to  be 
in  every  text-book  on  military  science  in  the  world,  and 
whose  "Marching  Through  Georgia"  has  put  "Yankee 
Doodle"  in  the  shade,  and  comes  nearer  being  the  national 
air  of  America  than  anything  else.  He  was  the  general 
renowned  for  wit  and  wisdom,  whose  every  word  uttered 
after  the  Civil  War  was  treasured  by  the  people.  It  is  con 
ceded  by  all  who-  were  intimate  with  him  that  he  was  the 
most  charming  personality,  the  most  brilliant  and  enter 
taining  conversationalist  of  his  day,  yet  he  did  not  escape 
Stanton,  who  did  all  that  was  possible  to  exasperate  and 
humiliate  him. 

General    Sherman   suffered    untold    miseries    at    the 


252  LIFE    OF    GEN.    SHIELDS. 

hands  of  Simon  Cameron,  Stanton's  predecessor  in  the 
war  office.  Those  who  are  familiar  with  the  first  edition 
of  General  Sherman's  memoirs  are  aware  of  the  baseless 
grounds  upon  which  Cameron  and  Adjutant- General  L. 
Thomas  furnished  the  press  with  statements,  in  which  they 
reported  that  Sherman  "was  crazy,  insane  and  mad." 
General  Sherman  says,  in  his  memoirs:  "The  authority 
given  for  this  report  was  stated  to  be  the  Secretary 
of  War  himself,  Mr.  Cameron,  who  never,  to  my  knowl 
edge,  took  pains  to  affirm  or  deny  it."  It  was  several 
months  after  that  foul  slander  had  been  circulated  before, 
even  with  his  brother's  Senator  Sherman's,  influence,  Gen 
eral  Sherman  could  be  reinstated,  and  when  he  was,  he  was 
only  assigned  to  the  command  of  the  camp  of  instruction. 
In  fact,  it  was  not  till  six  months  afterward,  at  the  battle  of 
Shiloh,  that  General  Sherman  was  given  an  opportunity 
to  prove  to  that  and  all  future  generations  how  groundless 
was  that  charge,  "that  reason  did  not  always  hold  her  em 
pire  o'er  his  brain,"  and  that  brilliancy,  great  activity  and 
sound  judgment  are  not  solely  the  attributes  or  accom 
plishments  of  the  lazy  and  stupid.  It  is  a  deplorable  fact 
that  men  and  women  of  mediocrity,  of  narrow  minds  and 
sordid  views,  as  well  as  small-fry  doctors,  often  raise  the 
cry  of  insanity  against  those  whose  capacities  they  are  as 
incapable  of  judging  properly  as  an  apothecary  is  of  weigh 
ing  an  elephant  upon  his  scales.  When  cultured  Amer 
icans,  reared  as  large  families  as  mechanics  and  laborers 
do,  and  impurity  was  not  so  fashionable,  one-horse  doctors 
had  opportunities  of  earning  fees  from  sources  that  they 
are  now  deprived  of.  Without  enterprise  or  ability,  or  a 
sense  of  justice  sufficient  to  induce  them,  in  case  of  failure, 
to  seek  other  and  legitimate  pursuits,  they  now  organize 
sanitariums,  faith  cures  and  other  fads,  and  hang  around 
courts,  soliciting  fees  as  so-called  experts  on  insanity,  and 
often,  through  wil fulness,  cupidity  or  ignorance,  aid  ma 
licious,  foolish  or  ignorant  relatives  to  deprive  their  bene 
factors  or  friends  of  their  liberty.  %Had  General  Sherman's 
relatives  adopted  modern  methods  in  his  case,  and  sub 
jected  him  to  trial,  it  is  possible  he  could  have  been,  if 


LIFE    OF    GEN.    SHIELDS.  253 

tried,  as  many  have  been,  railroaded  to  an  asylum,  and  thus 
have  had  his  career  cut  short  or  ruined. 

When  Lincoln,  as  his  real  historian  narrates,  was  suf 
fering  from  an  attack  of  melancholy  after  the  death  of  his 
first  love,  when  his  friends  thought  it  necessary  to  take 
him  to  Kentucky  for  a  change,  when  he  left  his  future 
wife  at  the  altar,  nearly  two  years  before  she  married  him, 
to  get  even  with  him,  which  she  did  all  his  life,  if  he  had 
been  tried  for  insanity  and  deprived,  as  others  have  been, 
of  witnesses,  the  right  to  address  the  jury  impaneled  to 
determine  his  right  to  liberty,  would  it  not  have  been  pos 
sible  to  convict  him,  and  would  not  that  have  left  him  "to 
dull  oblivion  a  prey?" 

But,  as  it  has  often  been  said,  Grant  stood  by  Sher 
man  when  he  "was  crazy,  and  Sherman  nobly  stood  by 
Grant  when  he  was  drunk,"  as  Sherman's  memoirs  will 
verify. 

But  to  return  to  Stanton's  persecution  of  Sherman. 
Lee,  at  Appomattox,  surrendered  to  Grant  on  April  9, 
1865,  and  on  the  i8th  of  that  month  General  Joseph  E. 
Johnston  and  General  Sherman  drew  up  a  basis  of  agree 
ment  for  the  surrender  of  the  Confederate  army,  near  Dur- 
hams  Station,  in  the  state  of  North  Carolina.  Sherman 
inclosed  it,  directed  to  Lieutenant-General  Grant,  or  Ma- 
jor-General  Halleck,  at  Washington,  on  the  same  day,  and 
on  April  24th  General  Grant  arrived  at  Durham,  having 
brought  with  him  from  Washington  written  answers  from 
the  Secretary  of  War  and  of  himself  to  General  Sherman's 
communication.  They  embraced  the  copy  of  a  dispatch 
made  by  Mr.  Stanton  to  General  Grant,  when  he  was  press 
ing  Lee  at  Appomattox,  which  dispatch  Sherman  says,  if 
sent  me  at  the  same  time  (as  should  have  been  done) 
would  have  saved  a  world  of  trouble.  I  did  not  under 
stand  that  General  Grant  had  come  down  to  supersede  me 
in  command,  nor  did  he  intimate  it,  nor  did  I  receive  these 
communications  as  a  serious  reproof,  but  promptly  acted 
on  them. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

War  Department, 
Washington  City,  April  21,  1865. 

LIEUTENANT-GENERAL  GRANT: 

General : — The  memoranda,  or  basis,  agreed  upon 
between  General  Sherman  and  General  Johnston,  having 
been  submitted  to  the  President,  they  are  disapproved. 
You  will  give  notice  of  the  disapproval  to  General  Sher 
man  and  direct  him  to  resume  hostilities  at  the  earliest 
moment. 

The  instructions  given  to  you  by  the  late  President, 
Abraham  Lincoln,  on  the  jd  of  March,  by  my  telegraph 
of  that  date,  addressed  to  you,  express  substantially  the 
views  of  President  Andrew  Johnson,  and  will  be  ob 
served  by  General  Sherman.  A  copy  is  herewith  appended. 

The  President  desires  that  you  proceed  immediately 
to  the  headquarters  of  Major-General  Sherman,  and  direct 
operations  against  the  enemy.  Yours  truly, 

EDWIN  M.  STANTON,  Secretary  of  War. 

The  following  telegram  was  received,  2  p.  m.,  City 
Point,  March  4,  1865  (from  Washington,  12  m.,  March  3, 
1865): 

(CIPHER.) 

Office  United  States  Military  Telegraph, 
Headquarters  Armies  of  the  United  States. 

LIEUTENANT-GENERAL  GRANT: 

The  President  directs  me  to  say  to  you  that  he  wishes 
you  to  have  no  conference  with  General  Lee,  unless  it  be 
for  the.  capitulation  of  Lee's  army,  or  on  solely  minor  and 
purely  military  matters.  He  instructs  me  to  say  that  you 
are  not  to  decide,  discuss  or  confer  upon  any  political 
question ;  such  questions  the  President  holds  in  his  own 
hands  and  will  submit  them  to  no  military  conferences  or 
conventions. 

Meantime  you  are  to  press  to  the  utmost  your  military 
advantages. 

EDWIN  M.  STANTON,  Secretary  of  War. 

In  his  reply  to  Stanton,  among  other  things,  Sherman 
said :  "I  had  flattered  myself  that  by  four  years  of  patient, 
unremitting  and  successful  labor,  I  deserved  no  reminder 
such  as  is  contained  in  the  last  paragraph  of  your  letter 
to  General  Grant." 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  *55 

On  the  same  day  he  and  Johnston  met  and  agreed 
upon  practically  the  same  terms  of  surrender  that  Lee 
did  when  he  surrendered  to  Grant.  On  April  2jd  Stanton 
issued  what  is  called  "His  First  Bulletin,"  which,  among 
other  things,  stated  that  "the  orders  of  General  Sherman 
to  General  Stoneman  to  withdraw  from  Salisbury  and  join 
him  will  probably  open  the  way  for  Davis  to  escape  to 
Mexico  or  Europe,  with  his  plunder,  which  is  reported 
to  be  very  large,  including  not  only  the  plunder  of  the 
Richmond  banks,  but  previous  accumulations." 

"A  dispatch  by  this  department  from  Richmond  says  :" 

"It  is  stated  here  by  respectable  parties  that  the  amount 
of  specie  taken  South  by  Jeff  Davis  and  his  partisans  is 
very  large,  including  not  only  the  plunder  of  the  Rich- 
moncls  banks,  but  previous  accumulations.  They  hope,  it 
is  said,  to  make  terms  with  General  Sherman/  or  some 
other  commander,  by  which  they  will  be  permitted,  with 
their  effects,  including  this  gold  plunder,  to  go  to  Mexico 
or  Europe.  Johnston's  negotiations  look  to  this  end." 

After  the  Cabinet  meeting  last  night  General  Grant 
started  for  North  Carolina  to  direct  operations  against 
Johnston's  army. 

EDWIN  M.  STANTON,  Secretary  of  War. 

"Here  followed  the  terms  and  Mr.  Stanton's  ten  rea 
sons  for  rejecting  them.  The  publication  of  this  bulletin  by 
authority  was  an  outrage  on  me,  for  Mr.  Stanton  had 
failed  to  communicate  to  me  in  advance,  as  was  his  duty, 
the  purpose  of  the  administration  to  limit  our  negotiations 
to  purely  military  matters,  but,  on  the  contrary,  at  Savan 
nah;  he  had  authorized  me  to  control  all  matters,  civil 
and  military. 

By  this  bulletin  he  implied  that  I  had  previously  been 
furnished  with  a  copy  of  this  dispatch  of  March  3d  to  Gen 
eral  Grant,  which  was  not  so,  and  he  gave  warrant  to  the 
impression,  which  was  sown  broadcast,  that  I  might  be 
bribed  by  banker's  gold  to  permit  Davis  to  escape. 

I  regarded  this  bulletin  of  Mr.  Stanton  as  a  personal 
and  official  insult,  which  I  afterward  publicly  resented." 

Sherman   wrote   to   Grant  a  few  days  afterward,   on 


256  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

April  28th,  a  long  letter,  resenting  Stanton's  insults,  and, 
among  other  things,  says:  "I  did  think  that  my  rank  (if 
not  past  services)  entitles  me  at  least  to  trust  that  the  Sec 
retary  of  War  would  keep  secret  what  was  communicated 
for  the  use  of  none  but  the  Cabinet,  until  further  inquiry 
could  be  made,  instead  of  giving  publicity  to  it  along  with 
documents  which  I  never  saw,  and  drawing  therefrom  in 
ferences  wide  of  the  truth. 

"I  have  never  in  my  life  questioned  or  disobeyed  an 
order,  though  many  and  many  a  time  have  I  risked  my  life, 
health  and  reputation  in  obeying  orders,  or  even  hints,  to 
execute  plans  and  purposes  not  to  my  liking.  It  is  not  fair 
to  withhold  from  me  the  plans  and  policy  of  government 
(if  any  there  be),  and  expect  me  to  guess  at  them,  for  facts 
and  events  appear  quite  different  from  different  standpoints. 
For  four  years  I  have  been  in  camp,  dealing  with  soldiers, 
and  I  can  assure  you  that  the  conclusion  at  which  the 
Cabinet  arrived  with  such  singular  unanimity  differs  from 
mine.  I  conferred  freely  with  the  best  officers  in  this  army 
as  to  the  points  involved  in  this  controversy,  and,  strange 
to  say,  they  were  singularly  unanimous  in  the  other  con 
clusion.  They  will  learn  with  pain  and  amazement  that 
I  am  deemed  insubordinate  and  wanting  in  common  sense ; 
that  I,  who  for  four  years  have  labored  day  and  night, 
winter  and  summer,  who  have  brought  an  army  of  seventy 
thousand  men  in  magnificent  condition  across  a  country 
hitherto  deemed  impassable,  and  placed  it  just  where  it 
was  wanted,  on  the  day  appointed,  have  brought  discredit 
to  our  government.  I  do  not  wish  to  boast  of  this,  but  I 
do  say  that  it  entitled  me  to  the  courtesy  of  being  con 
sulted  before  publishing  before  the  world  a  proposition 
rightfully  submitted  to  higher  authority  for  adjudication, 
and  then  accompanied  by  statements  which  invited  the 
dogs  of  the  press  to  be  let  loose  uoon  me.  It  is  true  that 
non-combatants,  men  who  sleep  in  comfort  and  security 
while  we  watch  on  the  distant  lines,  are  better  able  to  judge 
than  we  poor  soldiers,  who  rarely  see  a  newspaper,  hardly 
hear  from  our  families  or  stop  long  enough  to  draw  our 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  257 

pay.     I  envy  not  the  task  of  'reconstruction,'  and  am  de 
lighted  that  the  Secretary  of  War  has  relieved  me  of  it. 

"P.  S. — As  Mr.  Stanton's  most  singular  paper  has 
been  published,  I  demand  that  this  also  be  made  public, 
though  I  am  in  no  manner  responsible  to  the  press,  but 
to  the  law  and  my  proper  superiors. 

"W.  T.  S.,  Major-General." 

May  5th  I  was  in  possession  of  the  second  bulletin 
of  Mr.  Stanton,  published  in  all  the  Northern  papers,  with 
comments  that  assumed  that  I  was  a  common  traitor  and 
a  public  enemy,  and  high  officials  had  even  instructed  my 
own  subordinates  to  disobey  my  lawful  orders. 

War  Department,  Washington,  April  27,  9 130  a.  m. 

To  MAJOR-GENERAL  Dix: 

The  department  has  received  the  following  from  Ma 
jor-General  Halleck,  commanding  the  Military  Division  of 
the  James :  Generals  Canby  and  Thomas  were  instructed 
some  days  ago  that  Sherman's  arrangements  with  John 
ston  were  disapproved  by  the  President,  and  they  were 
ordered  to  disregard  it  and  push  the  enemy  in  every  direc 
tion. 

E.  M.  STANTON,  Secretary  of  War. 

Richmond,  Va.,  April  26th,  9:30  p.  m. 
HON.  E.  M.  STANTON,  Secretary  of  War: 

Generals  Meade,  Sheridan  and  Wright  are  acting  un 
der  orders  to  pay  no  regard  to*  any  truce  or  orders  of  Gen 
eral  Sherman  respecting  hostilities,  on  the  ground  that 
Sherman's  agreement  could  bind  his  command  only,  and 
no  other. 

They  are  directed  to  push  forward,  regardless  of  or 
ders  from  anyone  except  from  General  Grant,  and  cut  off 
Johnston's  retreat. 

Beauregard  has  telegraphed  to  Danville  that  a  new 
arrangement  has  been  made  with  Sherman,  and  that  the 
advance  of  the  Sixth  Corps  was  to  be  suspended  until 
further  orders. 

I  have  telegraphed  back  to  obey  no  orders  of  Sher 
man,  but  to  push  forward  as  rapidly  as  possible. 

17 


K58  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

The  bankers  here  have  information  to-day  that  Jeff 
Davis'  specie  is  moving  south  from  Goldsboro  in  wagons 
as  fast  as  possible. 

I  suggest  that  orders  be  telegraphed,  through  Gen 
eral  Thomas,  that  Wilson  obey  no  orders  from  Sherman, 
and  notifying  him  and  Canby  and  all  commanders  on  the 
Mississippi  to  take  measures  to  intercept  the  rebel  chiefs 
and  their  plunder. 

The  specie  taken  with  them  is  estimated  here  from 
six  to  thirteen  million  dollars. 

W.  H.  HALLECK,  Major-General  Commanding. 

I  suppose  the  exact  amount  of  treasure  which  Davis 
had  with  him  is  now  known  to  a  cent.  Some  of  it  was 
paid  to  his  escort,  when  it  disbanded  at  and  near  Wash 
ington,  Georgia,  and  at  the  time  of  his  capture  he  had 
a  small  parcel  of  gold  and  silver  coin,  not  to  exceed  ten 
thousand  dollars,  which  is  now  retained  in  the  United 
States  treasury  vault  at  Washington  and  shown  to  the 
curious. 

The  thirteen  millions  of  treasure  with  which  Jeff 
Davis  was  to  corrupt  our  armies  and  buy  his  escape 
dwindled  down  to  the  contents  of  a  hand  valise ! 

To  say  that  I  was  merely  angry  at  the  tone  and  sub 
stance  of  these  published  bulletins  of  the  War  Department 
would  hardly  express  the  state  of  my  feelings.  I  was  out 
raged  beyond  measure,  and  was  resolved  to  resent  the 
insult,  cost  what  it  might.  At  the  close  of  the  war  he 
said: 

"The  next  day  (by  invitation)  I  went  over  to  Wash 
ington  and  met  my  friends,  among  them  General  Grant  and 
President  Johnson.  He  was  extremely  cordial  to  me,  and, 
knowing  that  I  was  chafing  under  the  censures  of  the  War 
Department,  especially  of  the  two  war  bulletins  of  Mr. 
Stanton,  he  volunteered  to  say  that  he  knew  of  neither 
of  them  till  seen  in  the  newspapers,  and  that  Mr.  Stanton 
had  shown  neither  to  him  nor  to  any  of  his  associates  in 
the  Cabinet  till  they  were  published.  Nearly  all  the 
members  of  the  Cabinet  made  similar  assurances  to  me 
afterward,  and,  as  Mr.  Stanton  made  no  friendly  advances 
and  offered  no  word  of  explanation  or  apology,  I  declined 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

General  Grant's  friendly  offices  for  a  reconciliation,  but, 
on  the  contrary,  resolved  to  resent  what  I  considered  an 
insult  as  publicly  as  it  was  made. 

THE  GRAND   REVIEW. 

"The  morning  of  the  24th  was  extremely  beautiful, 
and  the  ground  was  in  splendid  order  for  our  review.  The 
streets  were  filled  with  people  to  see  the  pageant,  armed 
with  bouquets  of  flowers  for  their  favorite  regiments  or 
heroes,  and  everything  was  propitious.  Punctually  at  9 
a.  m.  the  signal-gun  was  fired,  when  in  person,  attended  by 
General  Howard  and  all  my  staff,  I  rode  slowly  down 
Pennsylvania  avenue,  the  crowds  of  men,  women  and  chil 
dren  densely  lining  the  sidewalks  and  almost  obstructing 
the  way.  We  were  followed  close  by  General  Logan  and 
the  head  of  the  Fifteenth  Corps.  When  I  reached  the 
treasury  building,  and  looked  back,  the  sight  was  simply 
magnificent.  The  column  was  compact,  and  the  glittering 
muskets  looked  like  a  solid  mass  of  steel,  moving  with  the 
regularity  of  a  pendulum.  We  passed  the  treasury  build 
ing,  in  front  of  which  and  of  the  White  House  was  an 
immense  throng  of  people,  for  whom  extensive  stands  had 
been  prepared  on  both  sides  of  the  avenue.  As  I  neared 
the  brick  house  opposite  the  lower  corner  of  Lafayette 
square,  someone  asked  me  to  notice  Mr.  Seward,  who, 
still  feeble  and  bandaged  for  his  wounds,  had  been  re 
moved  there  that  he  might  behold  the  troops.  I  moved 
in  that  direction  and  took  off  my  hat  to  Mr.  Seward,  who 
sat  at  an  upper  window.  He  recognized  the  salute,  re 
turned  it,  and  then  we  rode  on  steadily  past  the  President, 
saluting  with  our  swords.  All  on  his  stand  arose  and  ac 
knowledged  the  salute.  Then,  turning  into  the  gate  of  the 
presidential  grounds,  we  1'eft  our  horses  with  orderlies  and 
went  upon  the  stand,  where  I  found  Mrs.  Sherman,  with 
her  father  and  son.  Passing  them,  I  shook  hands  with  the 
President,  General  Grant  and  each  member  of  the  Cabinet. 
As  I  approached  Mr.  Stanton,  he. offered  me  his  hand,  but 
I  declined  it  publicly,  and  the  fact  was  universally  noticed." 


2(50  LIFE    OF    GEN.    SHIELDS. 


CHAPTER     XVII. 


Shields  a  Political  Martyr — More  Proof  of  Colonel  Carroll's  Failure 
at  Port  Republic — Colonel  Haycock's  Conclusive  Evidence — 
General  Jones  an  Unwilling  Corroborator  of  Colonel  Haycock — 
General  Coppinger's  Opinion — General  Sheridan's  Rank  When 
General  Shields  Defeated  Stonewall  Jackson — Extract  from 
General  Gates'  Speech — But  for  Carroll's  Disobedience  General 
Shields  Would  Have  Been  One  of  the  Most  Successful  Generals 
in  the  Civil  War. 


SHIELDS  A  POLITICAL  MARTYR. 
While  at  Columbus,  Ohio,  last  year  and  early  this 
spring,  I  wrote  Senator  John  Sherman  for  an  explanation 
why  he  and  other  Senators  refused  to  confirm  General 
Shields  as  a  Major-General  of  volunteers  when  Lincoln 
sent  his  name  to  the  Senate  soon  after  his  victory  at  Win 
chester.  I  said  that  I  was  writing  the  General's  life  and 
could  not  understand  why  colonels  who  fought  under 
him  on  that  occasion  were  made  brigadiers  as  a  reward 
for  their  services  and  he  was  denied  any  reward,  while 
McClellan  and  Stanton  had  congratulated  him  warmly 
for  his  skill,  zeal  and  activity.  I  received  no  reply  from 
the  Senator.  In  my  last  letter  I  said  if  any  reasonable 
excuse  could  be  made  for  such  unjust  discrimination,  it 
was  due  to  the  General's  widow  and  children  as  well  as 
to  the  public,  and  that  if  he  could  make  none  and  would 
not  attempt  to  palliate  or  excuse  the  wrong  inflicted  upon 
the  General  I  would  feel  at  liberty  to  criticise  his  course 
in  that  matter  as  freely  as  that  of  other  Senators.  When 
his  brother,  General  Sherman,  was  removed  without  cause, 
he  exerted  himself  to  the  utmost  to  get  him  restored,  and 
one  would  suppose  he  would  be  willing  to  do  justice  to 
a  brother  general.  His  silence  was  ominous.  It  was 
the  height  of  absurdity  to  deny  Lincoln's  recommenda- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  261 

tion  in  regard  to  the  chief,  who  had  exposed  himself  in 
front,  and  at  the  same  time  honor  his  subordinates.  Such 
rank  injustice  is  almost  without  a  parallel,  and  if  there 
ever  was  a  case  which  justified  Stanton's  criticism  of  the 
Republican  administration  before  he  entered  its  cabinet, 
this  is  one.  Put  none  but  Republicans  on  guard,  how 
ever  inefficient,  must  have  been  the  rule,  which  tolerated 
the  removal  of  Fremont  for  checking  Stonewall  Jackson 
at  Cross  Keys  and  Shields  for  defeating  him  before  then 
at  Winchester. 

Tt  was  but  inviting  defeat  and  insuring  disaster  to  have 
placed  over  both  of  these  soldiers  the  Bobbin  Boy  of 
Massachusetts,  N.  P.  Banks,  the  politician  whose  failures 
in  Virginia  are  only  surpassed  by  what  has  been  justly 
termed  his  Red  River  disaster. 

Shields1  confirmation  was  delayed  until  Colonel  Car 
roll's  failure  to  burn  the  bridge  at  Port  Republic,  as  or 
dered  by  Shields,  which  appears  in  his  official  report  of 
that  affair,  and  is  established  beyond  doubt  by  other  proof 
contained  herein,  and  without  investigation  Shields,  while 
in  his  prime,  was  driven  from  the  army.  He  knew  the 
scandal  caused  during  the  Mexican  War  by  Worth's  and 
Pillow's  court  martials,  and  being  a  Democrat,  if  he  had 
aired  his  grievances  in  the  press,  he  would  have  been 
classed  as  a  copperhead  or  traitor,  and  he  had  little  reason 
to  expect  justice  from  a  court  martial  when  the  Senate 
of  the  United  States  denied  him  his  richly  earned  laurels. 

He  left  posterity  to  vindicate  him,  when  party  strifes 
had  ceased  and  political  necessities  did  not  demand  mar 
tial  victims,  and  in  this  he  proved  wise.  Missourians 
elected  him  to  legislate  for  them  in  their  State  Assembly. 
He  was  appointed  Railroad  Commissioner,  and  in  Jan- 
nary,  1879,  tney  elected  him  one  of  their  United  States 
Senators. 

Those  acts  of  approval  and  that  of  Illinois  in  select 
ing  him  as  the  only  man  to  ever  represent  his  state  in 
Statuary  Hall,  in  the  Capitol  at  Washington,  are  vindica 
tions  greater  than  any  that  a  court  martial  could  give. 
This  is  a  verification  of  the  saying  that  "He  who  lives 
for  fame  must  live  for  posterity." 


262 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


Samuel  Sprig  Carroll  was  born  in  Washington  City,  D.  C,  Sep 
tember  21,  1833,  entered  West  Point  in  1852,  graduated  in  1856,  and 
appointed  to  the  Tenth  U.  S.  Infantry,  with  which  he  served  in 
Minnesota  and  Kansas.  In  1857,  he  accompanied  Johnson's  Expedi 
tion  to  Utah,  returned  in  1859  and  was  stationed  at  West  Point  as 
quartermaster.  In  November,  1861,  appointed  colonel  of  the  Eighth 
Regiment,  Ohio  Volunteers;  commanded  regiment  till  May  24,  1862, 
when  he  was  placed  in  command  of  a  brigade  in  Shields'  division; 


COL.  CARROLL  AT  PORT  REPUBLIC. 

commanded  brigade  and  was  nominated  brigadier-general,  but  was 
not  confirmed  until  May  13,  1864,  when  he  was  severely  wounded  at 
Spottsylvania  and  was  out  of  the  field  until  February,  1865,  when  he 
was  placed  in  command  of  the  Department  of  West  Virginia.  He 
was  appointed  brigadier-general  May  12,  1864;  April  6,  1865,  was 
assigned  to  command  Army  of  Shenandoah;  in  May  assigned  to 
command  First  Army  Corps,  Camp  Stoneman,  Washington;  in  July 
assigned  to  command  the  District  of  Northeast  Virginia,  headquarters 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  263 

at  Fredericksburg,  and  in  September  at  Charlottesville,  and  remained 
there  until  January  i,  1866,  when  he  was  mustered  out  of  volunteer 
service  and  placed  on  recruiting  service.  In  July  appointed  lieutenant- 
colonel  Twenty-first  U.  S.  Infantry  and  joined  regiment  at  Peters 
burg;  in  January,  1867,  appointed  inspector-general,  Miles'  Division 
of  the  Atlantic,  until  May,  1869,  when  he  was  retired  as  major-general 
U.  S.  A.,  and  has  since  died. 

Washington,  D.  C,  February  22,   1894. 
WM.  H.  CONDON.  ESQ. 

Dear  Sir: — I  have  the  honor  to  acknowledge  the  receipt  of  your 
note  of  the  I5th  inst.,  asking  me  if,  in  my  opinion,  the  late  General 
James  Shields  was  to  blame  for  the  federal  defeat  at  Port  Republic, 
Va.,  and  for  such  details  as  I  can  furnish  you  bearing  upon  that 
matter. 

In  reply  to  the  first  and  main  part  of  your  question,  it  evidently 
being  the  sole  item  of  paramount  interest  to  you,  I  beg  to  say 
that  in  my  humble  opinion  General  Shields  was  not  to  blame  for 
our  defeat  at  Port  Republic.  This  opinion  is  based  upon  impres 
sions  made  upon  my  mind  at  the  time  and  upon  a  knowledge  of 
certain  facts  which  transpired  while  I  was  actively  engaged  as  one 
of  the  factors  relating  thereto.  Shortly  after  the  battle  of  Port 
Republic,  General  Shields  was  recalled  to  Washington,  and  I,  with 
several  others  of  his  staff,  accompanied  him.  I  saw  no  further  service 
connected  with  the  army,  having  shortly  afterward  received  appoint 
ment  connected  with  the  military  branch  of  the  U.  S.  Navy.  It 
follows,  therefore,  that  the  details  of  the  stirring  times  with  General 
Shields  have  grown  dim  in  my  memory.  I  submit  the  following 
as  to  the  best  of  my  recollection  of  the  Port  Republic  affair: 

I  bore  the  orders  from  General  Shields  to  Colonel  Sprigg  Car 
roll,  then  commanding  brigade,  which  orders  were  in  regard  to  the 
expected  battle  at  Port  Republic. 

These  orders  were  made  out  in  a  private  room  at  the  General's 
headquarters  in  a  hotel  at  Front  Royal,  Va.,  were  dictated  by  the 
General,  written  out  by  Adjutant-General  Pelouse,  and  read  over 
to  me  by  him  until  committed  to  memory  by  me,  then  given  to  me 
to  bear  out  into  the  rain  and  dark  to  Colonel  Carroll,  whose  brigade 
was  in  advance  some  miles  up  the  road  toward  Front  Royal— on  the 
route  to  Port  Republic.  Only  General  Shields,  Adjutant-General 
Pelouse  and  I  were  in  the  room  when  the  orders  were  made  out  and 
issued  to  me. 

These  orders  were  for  Colonel  Carroll  to  load  up  by  daybreak 
his  wagons  with  commissary  stores,  borrowing  frcm  General  (Tyler? 
I  am  not  sure),  and  then  to  push  forward  as  a  flying  column  straight 
to  Port  Republic,  "burn  the  bridge,"  and  hold  Jackson  in  check,  and 
that  he,  Shields,  would  be  behind  him  and  come  in  at  his  support 
and  a  victory  would  be  won,  etc.  Concluding  with  these  words, 
"Do  this  and  you  will  win  your  stars." 

These  orders  were  delivered  by  me  to  Colonel  Carroll,  and  he 
moved  early  the  next  morning.  I  accompanied  Colonel  Carroll  one 
day's  march.  It  is  my  impression  that  rains  delayed  the  celerity 
of  movement  originally  contemplated  for  Carroll's  brigade,  as  well 
as  Shields'  own  supporting  column.  However,  when  Carroll  had 
his  fight  at  the  bridge  (I  think  a  few  days  had  elapsed),  the  day  was 
fair  and  his  defeated  forces  (in  reasonable  order)  were  met  (I  cannot 
recall  the  distance)  by  the  advance  of  Shields'  main  body  coming 
to  join  in  the  engagement,  and  which  took  position  on  hills  to  the 
right  and  left  and  covered,  or  joined,  Carroll's  forces.  I  was  not 


204  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

as  far  up  as  the  bridge,  but  with  Shields'  main  body  where  my  duties 
lay,  and  saw   only   this  last  movement. 

Here  you  have  such  facts  as  I  can  recall  with  certainty.  My 
humble  opinion  is  no  better  than  that  of  any  other  participant — know 
ing  what  i  know.  Other  prominent  features  of  that  campaign  may  be 
known  by  others  and  their  views  may  differ  from  mine.  Except  the 
plan  of  the  battle  of  Chancellorsville,  I  can  recall  no  great  tactics  of 
the  war  equal  to  the  combinations  that  were  sought  to  be  made 
effective  at  the  culminating  point — Port  Republic.  Shields  and  Car 
roll  ,were  both  brave  and  hard  fighters.  If  Carroll  had  burned  the 
bridge,  the  chances  of  defeating  Jackson  would  have  been  greatly 
in  Shields'  favor.  No  man  living  could  say  with  certainty  before  a 
battle  with  Jackson  that  victory  was  sure  to  perch  upon  his  banners. 
It  is,  however,  but  natural  to  conclude  that  the  gallant  soldier — the 
only  living  man  who  had  ever  defeated  Jackson  (at  Winchester) — 
might  have  made  (had  his  original  plans  been  carried  out)  sufficient 
head  against  his  wily  enemy  to  have  been  spared  all  semblance  of 
defeat.  It  may  be  urged  in  General  Carroll's  behalf  that  his  subse 
quent  brilliant  career  proved  him  at  Port  Republic  that  which  some 
times  befalls  all  men  in  all  walks  of  life — a  victim  of  unhappy  cir 
cumstances. 

Very  respectfully  yours, 

GEO.  B.  HAYCOCK. 

LETTER    FROM    GENERAL   JONES. 

Delaware,    Ohio,    March   16,    1899. 
WILLIAM  H.  CONDON. 

Dear  Sir: — Replying  to  your  request  for  my  information  as  to 
whether  General  James  Shields  issued  an  order  to "  Colonel  Sprigg 
Carroll  to  proceed  as  speedily  as  possible  to  Port  Republic,  and 
"burn  the  bridge  and  win  his  stars,"  etc.,  will  say  the  only  personal 
knowledge  I  have  bearing  on  the  controverted  point  is,  that  im 
mediately  preceding  the  disaster  to  the.  advance  of  our  forces,  under 
command  of  Colonel  Carroll,  a  messenger  from  General  Fremont 
reached  General  Shields  with  information  as  to  the  position  of  Fre 
mont's  army,  and  as  to  his  plans  and  purposes,  and  I  heard  General 
Shields  explain  to  this  messenger  that  he  would  push  his  advance 
to  the  bridge  at  Port  Republic,  burn  -the  same,  and  then  cross  his 
division  at  Columbia  bridge  to  join  Fremont  in  an  effort  to  crush 
Jackson.  That  such  was  General  Shields'  purpose,  and  that  he  sent 
this  word  to  General  Fremont  by  the  return  messenger,  I  personally 
know.  Columbia  bridge  had  been  burned  by  the  Confederates,  but 
a  floating  bridge  was  to  be  constructed  over  which  Shields'  division 
was  to  pass.  Such  a  bridge  was  well  under  way,  if  not  already  com 
pleted,  when  the  disaster  at  Port  Republic  occurred.  I  remember  it 
was  claimed  at  the  time  that  Colonel  Carroll  was  forced  back  by 
superior  numbers,  and  was  unable  to  burn  the  bridge;  others  claimed 
that  his  cavalry  had  set  it  on  fire,  and  that  he  ordered  the  fire  ex 
tinguished,  and  finally  the  controversy  arose  as  to  whether  or  not 
an  order  to  burn  the  bridge  was  ever  given.  I  read  an  article  many 
years  ago,  purporting  to  have  been  written  by  some  gentleman  con 
nected  with  General  Fremont's  headquarters,  in  which  it  was  claimed 
that  it  was  fortunate  that  the  bridge  at  Port  Republic  was  not  burned; 
that  in  such  an  event  Jackson  would  have  turned  upon  and  destroyed 
Fremont's  forces.  But  this  writer  was  evidently  not  aware  of  the 
plan  understood  between  Generals  Fremont  and  Shields,  by  which 
Fremont  was  to  be  reinforced  by  Shields'  division.  Had  not  the 
plan  of  burning  the  bridge  at  Port  Republic  miscarried,  and  had 


LIFE     OF     GEN,    SHIELDS. 

Jackson  been  forced  to  renew  the  fight  with  General  Fremont,  to 
save  himself  he  would  have  been  compelled  to  overcome  the  com 
bined  forces  of  Fremont  and  Shields. 

At  the  time  the  advance  under  Carroll  started  for  Port  Republic,  I 
was  absent  with  an  expedition  of  cavalry,  sent  from  the  vicinity  of 
Luray  toward  Culpepper  Courthouse,  to  ascertain  whether  our  forces 
were  likely  to  be  attacked  from  the  rear  by  a  column  rumored  to  be 
approaching  Luray  from  that  direction.  After  ascertaining  that  no 
danger  was  to  be  apprehended  from  that  source,  I  reported  to  General 
Shields,  whom  I  found  on  the  road  between  Columbia  Bridge  and 
Port  Republic.  It  was  here  the  messenger  from  General  Fremont 
reached  us,  having  crossed  the  river  in  a  skiff,  and  the  conversation 
which  I  have  detailed  occurred. 

Your  letter  awakens  reminiscences  of  events  that  occurred  thirty- 
seven  years  ago,  when  I  was  a  young  lieutenant  in  the  Fourth  Ohio, 
doing  active  duty  as  an  aid-de-camp  on  the  staff  of  General  Shields. 
I  was  detailed  from  the  ranks,  and  saw  General  Shields  for  the  first 
time  when  I  reported  for  duty  at  his  headquarters.  I  was  by  his 
side  when  he  was  wounded  at  the  battle  of  Winchester,  and  remained 
with  him  until  he  quit  the  service.  I  loved  him,  was  beloved  by 
him,  and  I  greatly  revere  his  memory.  After  his  resignation  I  re 
turned  to  my  regiment  and  company  in  Carroll's  Brigade,  and  the 
most  precious  legacy  that  I  will  be  enabled  to  leave  my  children  is 
the  fact  that  their  father  fought  in  Carroll's  Brigade,  under  Hancock, 
at  Gettysburg. 

General  Shields  and  General  Carroll  were  officers  of  such  superb 
valor  that  those  who  served  under  them  would  much  prefer  to  extol 
their  virtues  than  to  call  up  any  matter  of  controversy  between  them 
that  might  in  any  way  reflect  upon  the  memory  of  either. 

Very  respectfully  yours, 

JOHN  S.  JONES. 

GENERAL  COPPINGER'S  LETTER. 
Fort  Houston,  San  Antonio,  Texas,  March  15,  1894. 

Dear  Sir: — I  received  yesterday  your  letter  and  Donahoe's  Maga 
zine  containing  memoir  of  General  Shields.  For  both  accept  my 
thanks. 

I  regret  greatly  I  cannot  throw  any  light  on  disputed  points 
concerning  orders  at  the  battle  of  Port  Republic.  I  was  not  there. 
I  know  nothing  definite  of  the  orders  issued. 

Concerning  the  bridge,  my  impression  was  that  "somebody 
blundered,"  and  that  that  "somebody"  was  not  General  Shields. 

I  knew  him  intimately.  He  was  a  grand  man  and  a  gallant 
soldier.  In  my  judgment,  his  fighting  in  the  Shenandoah  Valley  was 
masterly,  where  so  many  had  tried  and  failed. 

Of  his  aides-de-camp  Captain  Keily  was  shot  through  the  head, 
both  jaws  broken,  at  Port  Republic;  recovered  enough  to  serve 
again,  but  ultimately  died. 

Colonel  J.  O'Keefe,  shot  twice  at  Five  Forks,  and  died  of  the 
wounds  a  few  weeks  after. 

Colonel  Miles  Kepugh,  killed  with  General  Custer  on  Little  Big 
Horn  in  fight  with  Sioux  Indians. 

They  came  directly  from  Italy,  where  they  were  lieutenants  in 
the  Pope's  service.  They  went  directly  to  the  field  in  Virginia.  They 
fought,  they  died — these  gallant  Irish  gentlemen — dear  old  boys — 
God  bless  them. 

Faithfully  yours, 

J.  J.  COPPINGER. 


260  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

General  Phil  Sheridan,  in  February,  1862,  was  in  Missouri,  under 
General  Curtis,  acting  as  chief  quartermaster,  a  position  he  was 
worked  out  of  by  an  Iowa  ex-banker,  who,  after  the  war,  was  sent 
to  the  penitentiary  for  stealing  a  large  sum  of  money  from  the  United 
States  Treasury  at  Washington  while  employed  there  as  clerk. 

General  Halleck  sent  Sheridan  to  purchase  horses  for  the  army, 
and  for  that  purpose  he  went  to  Madison  and  Racine,  Wis.,  and  Chi 
cago,  which  place  he  made  the  center  of  his  operations.  This  is  the 
duty-  he  was  performing  when  General  Shields  defeated  Stonewall 
Jackson.  Sheridan's  rank  then  was  captain  of  infantry. 

If  Colonel  Carroll,  on  June  9  of  that  year,  at  Port  Republic,  had 
burned  the  bridge,  as  Colonel  Haycock's  evidence  conclusively  proves 
he  was  ordered  to  do,  the  effect  on  Stonewall  Jackson  and  his  army 
would  have  been  disastrous  in  the  extreme.  More  proof  of  this  cannot 
be  required  than  the  admission  of  General  Gates  of  the  Confederate 
forces,  who,  on  December  6,  1893,  as  a  member  of  Congress,  said: 
"Shields  had  made  a  circuit  of  the  valley  up  the  river  so  as  to  get 
before  us,  and  he  had  a  long  march  to  make  to  reach  Port  Republic. 
But  he  had  pressed  on  until  he  had  approached  that  village,  and  had 
he  crossed  his  force  into  the  forks  of  the  two  rivers  and  captured 
the  bridge,  there  was  no  escape  for  Jackson.  He  would  have  had  an 
army  in  his  rear  and  one  in  his  front,  and  near  the  crossing  of  the 
river,  with  no  road  or  bridge  to  escape,  and  it  would  probably  have 
proved  his  destruction." 

If  Shields,  in  addition  to  having  defeated  Stonewall  Jackson  at 
Winchester  in  March,  had  destroyed  or  captured  his  entire  army  in 
June,  would  lie  net  have  been  one  of  the  Shermans,  Sheridans  or 
Meades  of  that  war?  Alas,  that  the  blunder  of  a  subordinate  should 
deprive  his  chief  of  merited  renown,  curb  the  career  of  a  "born  soldier" 
in  his  prime,  and  cause  his  removal  from  command,  while  the  cause 
of  his  downfall  is  rewarded  with  increased  honors. 

It  is  very  gratifying  to  find  that  my  work  in  behalf  of  the  Shields' 
statue  was  the  occasion  which  produced  such  convincing  proof  and 
conclusive  evidence  as  is  contained  in  General  Gates'  speech,  that 
Jackson's  escape  and  the  capture  of  the  bridge  at  Port  Republic  was 
not  through  any  fault  of  General  Shields.  If  noi,  why  should  he  have 
been  denied  by  a  war  Senate  his  major-generalship,  won  at  Winches 
ter?  Was  not  that  rank  injustice  and  outrageous  treatment?  Kim- 
ball,  Tyler  and  Sullivan,  his  subordinates  at  Winchester,  all  rewarded 
and  he  censured,  impliedly,  by  his  subsequent  removal  from  command. 
Look  at  his  picture,  denoting  health  and  vigor,  and  see  if  there  is 
in  a  lineament  of  his  features  the  faintest  indication  of  weakness  or 
irresolution. 

I  have  heard  it  from  scores  that  Colonel  Carroll  reached  the 
bridge,  planted  his  guns,  put  the  combustibles  on  the  bridge,  to  burn 
it  as  ordered,  and  then,  thinking  the  force  on  the  other  side  was 
small,  he  delayed  to  capture  it,  was  deceived,  and  then  was  driven 
from  the  bridge,  which  his  force  left  without  even  lighting  a  match 
to  burn  it. 

Such  criminal  negligence  was  almost  treason.     It  was  willful  vio- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  267 

lation  of  written  orders,  as  Colonel  Haycock's  letter  shows,  if  it 
was  not  cowardice,  shown  at  a  vital  time. 

That  Carroll  was  known  to  have  been  blameworthy,  most 
regimental  and  other  historians  concede,  which,  in  a  measure,  accounts 
for  the  Senate's  failure  to  confirm  him  as  a  brigadier  for  nearly  two 
years  afterward. 

No  one  wrote  the  history  of  his  regiment,  the  Eighth  Ohio,  for 
nearly  a  score  of  years  after  the  blunder  at  the  bridge,  trusting,  prob 
ably,  to  time  to  wipe  out  the  disgrace  from  Carroll's  record.  General 
Jones,  in  his  letter,  praises  Carroll,  yet  corroborates  others  in  regard 
to  Shields'  intended  junction  with  Fremont  frustrated  by  Carroll 
and  others. 


CHAPTER     XVIII. 


Senator  Shields  in  Minnesota — One  of  the  Founders  of  Faribault  and 
Shieldsville— His  Election  as  One  of  Its  First  Senators— De 
parture  for  California — Marriage  There — His  Children — Small 
Pension  Until  Just  Before  His  Death. 


I  find  the  following  in  a  History  of  Faribault,  Minn.: 

"The  first  proprietors  of  what  is  known  as  the  old  town  were 
A.  Faribault,  Luke  Hulitt,  W.  Morris  and  H.  H.  Sibley,  and  suc 
cessively  appear  the  names  of  J.  W.  Smith,  Porter  Nutting,  J.  H.  Mills, 
W.  Sherwood,  Sr.,  Samuel  Wallace.  General  Shields,  late  United 
States  Senator  from  Illinois,  purchased  an  interest  in  the  town  in 
1855,  and  received  a  deed  from  Judge  Chatfield  May  29,  1856. 
General  Shields,  as' agent  and  attorney  of  the  company,  has  since 
issued  titles  for  all  the  lots  sold;  the  old  site,  as  surveyed  and  plotted 
by  B.  Densmore,  contains  280  acres.  The  population  of  Faribault 
was  estimated  in  1888  at  about  6,500,  while  to-day  (1898)  it  is  safe 
to  assert  it  exceeds  9,000. 

Alexander  Faribault  and  General  James  Shields  were  the  principal 
proprietors  of  the  original  town  of  Faribault.  General  Shields  for  six 
years  served  with  marked  ability  in  the  Senate  of  Illinois,  and,  at 
the  expiration  of  his  term,  in  1855,  came  to  Minnesota.  In  1855 
President  Pierce  appointed  him  territorial  governor  of  Oregon, 
which  position  he  held  only  for  a  brief  period. 

He  founded  the  village  of  Shieldsville,  and  soon  afterward  took 
up  his  residence  in  Faribault,  Minn.,  being  interested  in  the  town 
site  comany.  When  the  first  Legislature  of  Minnesota  convened  at 
St.  Paul  in  December,  1858,  it  elected  General  Shields  and  Henry 
M.  Rice  United  States  Senators.  The  General  drew  the  short  term 
of  two  years.  His  term  having  expired,  he  failed  to  be  reflected,  and 
in  1860  went  to  California. 

On  the  breaking  out  of  the  Rebellion  he  tendered  his  services 
to  President  Lincoln  and  was  appointed  a  brigadier-general  in 
Banks'  corps.  He  soon  again  displayed  his  military  genius  and 
fighting  qualities  by  decisively  defeating  Stonewall  Jackson  in  the 
battle  of  Winchester.  For  his  services  in  this  brilliant  victory  Presi 
dent  Lincoln  nominated  him  a  major-general,  but  the  Senate  re- 


268 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


LIFE    OF    GEN.    SHIELDS.  2(59 

fused  to  confirm  the  appointment,  and  General  Shields  resigned  his 
commission  and  returned  to  California,  afterward  removing  to  Mis 
souri.  In  1879  he  again  entered  politics  and  was  elected  United 
States  Senator  from  Missouri  to  fill  an  unexpired  term.  He  ran  for 
Congress  in  18/5,  and,  though  receiving  a  majority  of  the  votes 
cast,  his  opponent  contested  the  seat  and  the  Republican  Congress 
unseated  the  General.  In  1878  the  House  passed  a  bill  authorizing 
the  President  to  appoint  him  a  brigadier-general  of  the  United  States 
Army  on  the  retired  list,  but  the  Senate  failed  to  concur.  During 
-the  last  few  years  of  his  life  he  frequently  lectured,  and  was  every 
where  received  with  marks  of  esteem  and  appreciation.  He  died  sud 
denly  at  Ottumwa,  Iowa,  where  he  was  lecturing  and  visiting  friends, 
on  Sunday  evening,  June  I,  1879.  The  funeral  took  place  at  Carroll- 
ton,  Mo.,  and  the  remains  now  lie  in  the  little  cemetery  near  that  city. 
Thus  ended  the  brilliant  and  romantic  career  of  a  man  whose 
native  genius,  indomitable  pluck  and  tireless  energy  enabled  him  to 
surmount  all  obstacles  and  to  place  his  name  high  on  the  pedestal 
of  fame  in  his  adopted  land,  which  he  loved  and  for  which  he  shed 
his  blood  and  devoted  the  best  years  of  an  honest  life. 

Shieldsville  was  subdivided  into  lots  by  General  Shields  in  1855, 
and  he  had  a  farm  in  the  suburbs,  on  which  he  had  men  running  a 
sawmill  by  hand.  It  is  said  when  he  went  to  California  he  gave  the 
farm  to  a  nephew. 

The  town  is  about  ten  miles  northwest  of  Faribault,  and,  while 
fairly  prosperous,  was  outstripped  by  the  latter  place,  at  which  many 
state  institutions  are  located. 

Shieldsville  is  blessed  with  a  fine  Catholic  church,  built  of  stone, 
eight  large  creameries,  several  large  stores,  sawmills,  grist  mills, 
schools  and  every  indication  of  thrift  and  prosperity. 

Its  inhabitants  are  principally  industrious  mechanics,  with  a 
fair  sprinkling  of  members  of  the  different  professions.  Its  post 
master,  Patrick  McKenna,  has  resided  there  since  the  place  was 
started,  and,  like  his  neighbors,  reveres  the  memory  of  its  founder. 

General  Shields  was  elected  United  States  Senator  from  Minnesota 
May  12,  1858,  and  in  drawing  lots  drew  the  short  term,  which  was 
thence  to  March  4,  1859. 

Mrs.  Shields  was  Mary  Ann  Carr.  She  was  born  in 
Longhall,  County  Armagh,  Ireland.  She  emigrated  with 
her  father  and  mother  when  she  was  only  ten  years  old. 
Only  a  few  weeks  after  arrival  here  her  father  died  of 
sunstroke,  and  one  year  later  her  mother  died,  leaving 
her  an  orphan.  The  General  was  then  living  at  Fari 
bault,  near  St.  Paul,  where  she  first  met  him.  He  left 
about  that  time  for  California.  Judge  Corkery  and  his 
wife  left  St.  Paul  shortly  after  and  went  to  California. 
Miss  Carr  went  with  them  as  companion  to  Mrs.  Corkery, 
who  was  delicate. 

The  General  opened  a  law  office  in  San  Francisco 


270  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

and  the  Judge  was  his  partner.  He  and  the  young  lady 
met  frequently  at  Corkery's  and  the  result  was  marriage. 
She  was  a  kind,  affectionate  and  attentive  wife,  devoted 
to  her  husband's  welfare,  and  has  shown  great  wisdom 
in  caring  for  her  children  since  the  General's  death,  al 
ways  strictly  attentive  to  her  home  duties  and  the  wel 
fare  of  her  children. 

There  were  five  children  born  to  them.  Mary,  who 
died  when  eight  years  of  age,  and  James,  who  lived  to 
about  the  same  age.  His  father  regretted  his  loss  very 
much  and  some  believe  he  never  ceased  to  grieve  over  it, 
He  was  the  General's  image  and  seemed  to  have  inherited 
all  his  fine  traits  of  character.  He  had  the  same  fiery 
gray  eyes,  quick  movement  and  temperament. 

Charles  J.  was  the  next  child.  He  is  a  graduate  of 
the  University  of  Notre  Dame  in  Indiana,  of  the  law7  de 
partment  of  the  Washington  Lee  University  of  Virginia, 
and  was  practicing  his  profession  at  Carrollton,  Missouri, 
but  is  in  the  army  in  Porto  Rico. 

Katherine  J.,  his  daughter,  graduated  from  the  Bos 
ton  Conservatory  of  Music  with  the  highest  honors.  She 
is  organist  of  the  Catholic  Church  at  Carrollton,  where 
she  resides  with  her  mother,  and  no  ladies  in  the  city 
are  more  highly  respected.  I  regret  to  learn  that  her 
health  is  poor. 

Daniel  J.  was  educated  at  the  Christian  Brothers' 
School  and  Georgetown  University  at  Washington,  and 
is  connected  with  the  Wrabash  Railroad  at  St.  Louis. 

In  1894,  when  I  last  saw  her,  she  was  bright 
and  active,  drove  her  own  phaeton,  from  which  she 
alighted  as  briskly  as  her  daughter  could,  and  every 
where  cordially  greeted  by  the  best  people  of  Carrollton. 
Her  daughter  is  an  accomplished  equestrienne,  and  I  was 
pleased  to  hear  a  fine  old  gentleman  say  to  her,  "That 
horse  of  Charlie's  is  not  good  enough  for  you  to  ride. 
I'm  going  out  to  buy  a  drove  and  shall  see  that  you  have 
a  better  one  than  his  to  ride  soon."  This  shows  how 
the1  General  stood  among  his  neighbors.  I  regret  that  I 
cannot  induce  Mrs.  Shields  to  sit  for  her  picture. 


LIFE    OF    GEN.    SHIELDS.  271 


SENATOR    FROM    MISSOURI. 


272  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

General  Shields  first  applied  .for  pension  January  17, 
1859,  and  he  was  granted  a  pension  of  $30  per  month, 
commencing  February  21,  1859,  f°r  disability  caused  by 
gunshot  wound  of  right  chest,  received  in  the  battle  of 
Cerro  Gordo,  Mexico,  April  18,  1847,  and  a  gunshot 
wound  of  the  left  arm,  received  at  the  storming  of  Cha- 
pultepec,  Mexico,  on  the  I3th  day  of  September,  1847. 

When  he  entered  the  service  during  the  late  War  of 
the  Rebellion,  his  pension  under  existing  laws  ceased 
from  the  date  of  his  entry  into  the  service,  December  6, 
1 86 1.  After  his  discharge  from  the  service  March  28, 
1863,  his  pension  was  restored  to  him,  to  commence  the 
date  after  his  discharge,  namely,  March  29,  1863.  He 
was  paid  at  that  rate  until  June  18,  1878,  when  the  pen 
sion  was  increased  by  special  act  of  Congress  to  $100 
per  month. 

By  a  special  act  of  Congress,  approved  June  28, 
1879,  payment  of  pension  at  the  rate  of  $100  per  month 
was  continued  to  his  widow  and  children,  the  full  amount 
of  said  pension  to  be  paid  the  widow  during  her  widow 
hood,  and  at  the  expiration  thereof,  if  the  same  should 
occur  while  said  children  or  any  of  them  are  under  the 
age  of  sixteen  years,  then  the  said  pension  to  be  paid 
to  such  of  said  children  as  may  then  be  under  the  age 
of  sixteen  years,  in  equal  parts,  until  they  respectively 
arrive  at  that  age. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  273 


CHAPTER     XIX. 


Celebration  of  the  Twenty-fifth  Anniversary  of  the  Organization  of 
the  Shields  Guard  at  Auburn,  N.  Y.,  in  1877 — Welcome  by 
Colonel  Kennedy — Response  by  General  Shields — Procession — 
Flag  of  the  Palmetto  Regiment  of  South  Carolina  Carried 
Through  the  Mexican  War — Speaker  Pomeroy's  Address — Gov 
ernor  Robinson's  Welcome — Governor  Wade  Hampton's  Re 
sponse — General  Shields'  Enthusiastic  Welcome  and  Brilliant 
Speech. 


The  celebration  of  the  Twenty-fifth  anniversary  of  the  organiza 
tion  of  the  Shields  Guards,  a  military  body  of  Auburn,  N.  Y.,  was 
the  occasion  of  General  James  Shields'  visit  to  that  city  on  July  20. 
1877.  The  celebration  had  been  suggested  and  elaborately  planned 
by  Captain  M.  H.  Hogan,  of  the  Shields  Guards,  and  the  famous 
hero  of  two  wars  had  very  graciously  accepted  the  invitation  to  be 
present.  An  invitation  had  also  been  extended  to  and  accepted  by 
General  Wade  Hampton,  governor  of  South  Carolina,  who  had  been 
with  the  famous  Palmetto  regiment  at  the  battle  of  Churubusco. 
Governor  Robinson  of  the  Empire  State  was  also  invited  to  be  present 
at  the  ceremonies. 

Governor  Robinson  had  notified  the  reception  committee  of  his 
arrival  in  the  city,  on  the  evening  of  June  19,  and  preparations  had 
been  made  tc  give  the  chief  executive  of  the  state  a  royal  welcome. 
There  was  an  immense  assembly  at  the  station  to  await  the  arrival 
of  Governor  Robinson.  The  large  building  was  crowded  to  its  utmost 
extent,  and  the  streets  adjoining  were  filled  with  an  enthusiastic,  surg 
ing  mass  of  people,  all  anxious  to  catch  a  sight  of  the  distinguished 
guest.  The  stirring  strains  of  the  Old  Auburn  Band  and  a  salvo  of 
artillery,  by  Captain  Webster's  firing  party,  emphasized  the  cordial 
welcome  of  the  populace.  The  Governor  and  his  son,  Hon.  D.  C. 
Robinson,  were  conducted  through  the  crush  of  people  by  Captain 
Hogan  and  Hon.  Charles  N.  Ross  to  a  carriage  and  conveyed  to  the 
residence  of  the  latter  gentleman,  preceded  by  the  band  and  accompa 
nied  by  a  large  concourse  of  people.  As  the  party  passed  St.  Peter's 
Church,  the  chimes  struck  out  a  merry  welcome. 

The  arrival  of  General  Shields  was  made  with  the  modesty  char 
acteristic  of  a  true  soldier,  quietly  and  unannounced.  Although  com 
ing  on  the  same  train  with  Governor  Robinson,  no  dispatches  pre 
ceded  him,  and  the  reception  committee  departed  from  the  station, 
leaving  the  old  hero  to  find  his  own  way  to  the  hotel.  This  just  suited 
18 


274 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


the  dry  humor  of  the  General,  and,  without  making  himself  known,  he 
passed  to  the  Osborne  House  and  registered  his  name.  This  led  to 
inquiry,  and  the  word  was  rapidly  passed  that  the  General  had  come, 
and  the  welcome,  though  delayed  a  short  time,  must  have  satisfied 
him  that  the  hero  of  Cerro  Gordo,  Churubusco  and  Winchester  had 
warm  friends  in  the  city.  These  friends,  twenty-five  years  before, 
delighted  to  honor  his  glorious  deeds  by  giving  his'  name  to  one  of 
its  leading  military  organizations.  Preceded  by  the  band,  the  General 


CAPT.     M.     H.    HOGAN,     NOW    OF    ROCHESTER,     N.    Y. 


was  at  once  conducted  to  the  residence  of  Mr.  Ross,  whose  guest  he 
was  during  his  stay  in  Auburn. 

General  Wade  Hampton  arrived  the  next  morning  at  an  early 
hour. '  He  was  also  given  a  rousing  welcome.  He  was  escorted  to 
the  residence  of  Mr.  Ross,  where  he  met  his  old  friend,  General 
Shields,  and  Governor  Robinson. 

The  mammoth  celebration  had  been  announced  throughout  the 
state,  and  the  trains  on  the  different  railroads  leading  into  Auburn 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  275 

were  crowded  with  visitors.  The  cordial  reception  of  the  visitors  was 
evidenced  by  a  general  display  of  decorations  from  public  and  private 
buildings.  It  was  an  elaborate  demonstration  of  popular  enthusiasm. 
On  the  arrival  of  the  Independent  Zouaves  of  Rochester,  with  the 
regimental  band  of  that  city,  they  were  escorted  to  the  residence  of 
Mr.  Ross  by  the  Shields  Guards.  Their  handsome  appearance  and 
soldierly  bearing  elicited  considerable  applause.  After  a  selection  by 
the  band,  Colonel  T.  J.  Kennedy,  in  behalf  of  the  Shields'  Guards 
and  their  visitors,  made  the  following  address: 

"General  Shields:  In  behalf  of  the  Shields  Guards  and  of  the 
Rochester  Zouaves,  commanded  by  Captain  Ward,  we  welcome  you 
to  Auburn,  and  your  fellow  citizen  and  friend,  General  Hampton. 
We  remember  your  brave  acts  on  the  field  of  battle  in  Mexico.  It 
was  with  a  thrill  of  joy  we  heard  of  your  victories.  It  was  with  sorrow 
we  heard  of  the  deep  wounds  received  in  your  country's  service.  It 
is  with  heartfelt  pleasure  we  meet  you  here  to-day,  and  we  pray  that 
you  may  live  in  future  time  to  see  ou'r  nation,  our  whole  country,  united 
and  happy,  for  no  man  has  a  better  right  to  enjoy  his  country's  hap 
piness  and  prosperity  than  he  who  has  shed  his  blood  on  foreign  soil 
and  upon  our  own,  for  the  defense  of  the  flag. 

"Therefore,  in  behalf  of  these  soldiers,  like  yourself,  natives  of 
the  Green  Isle,  but  true  adopted  citizens  of  this  country,  following 
its  flag  where  duty  calls,  I  bid  you  welcome. 

"And  to  you,  sir,  Governor  Hampton  of  South  Carolina,  I  extend 
a  cordial  welcome.  It  was  my  fortune  at  the  opening  of  the  late  war 
to  be  one  of  the  first  men  in  the  state  to  offer  my  services  to  the 
country.  The  first  military  company  was  organized  under  my  com 
mand,  and  I  remember  well  the  day  of  our  first  parade  in  the  streets 
of  Auburn,  the  day  we  heard  of  the  firing  on  Fort  Sumter.  With  sad 
hearts  we  moved  forward  to  the  inevitable  contest.  The  day  was  fair 
and  pleasant,  like  this,  and  we  rejoice,  after  years  of  separation  and 
estrangement,  to  meet  in  friendly  reunion,  the  Governor  of  the  repre 
sentative  Southern  commonwealth,  the  'Palmetto'  State.  We  have 
met  him  before,  some  of  us,  on  the  field  of  battle,  and  learned  to  honor 
his  valor  and  that  of  the  brave  men  under  his  command.  WTith  that 
contest  we  have  nothing  to  do  to-day.  A  want  of  the  knowledge  of 
the  South  on  the  part  of  the  North  and  a  want  of  the  knowledge  of 
the  North  on  the  part  of  the  South  led  to  many  errors,  and  now  we 
seek  a  better  understanding.  WTe  seek  to  forgive  and  forget  the 
mistakes  of  the. past,  weeping  for  those  who  fell  in  battle — mourning 
the  brave  men  who  gave  their  lives  for  their  convictions.  Meeting 
thus  to-day,  fellow  citizens  and  soldiers  of  the  North,  and  you,  the 
Governor  of  a  southern  state,  we  say  to  you,  we  welcome  you 
heartily. 

"And  General  Shields,  who  before  the  war  fought  with  the 
soldiers  of  the  South  in  the  battles  of  our  common  country,  under 
the  'Palmetto'  flag,  it  is  no  common  event  that  these  two  gentlemen 
meet  under  these  circumstances.  Each  representing  a  section  of  our 
reunited  land,  you  meet  in  fraternal  regard,  under  the  flag  of  our 
glorious  country,  the  stars  and  stripes.  Shoulder  to  shoulder,  you 
and  the  sections  you  represent  are  henceforth  to  stand  united  as 
one  against  foreign  foes,  never  again  to  wage  unfriendly  strife  against 
each  other. 

"Once  more  I  bid  you  welcome,  and  the  blessings  of  Providence 
rest  upon  you  and  may  your  lives  long  be  spared  to  your  country." 

General  Shields  then  came  forward  and  replied  in  a  voice  choked 
with  emotion.  As  he  proceeded,  something  of  the  ancient  fire  came 


276  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

into  his  blood,  and  the  old-time  eloquence  to  his  lips,  giving  the  hearer 
a  faint  idea  of  the  personal  magnetism  the  old  hero  must  have 
possessed  over  his  soldiers  in  the  days  when  he  was  ever  a  leader 
where  danger  was  most  threatening. 

"Fellow  Soldiers  of  the  Shields  Guard,  Fellow  Soldiers  of  Roch 
ester  and  Fellow  Citizens:  I  thank  you  sincerely  for  the  kind  and 
generous  welcome  you  are  giving  us  to-day.  I  came  to  Auburn  with 
some  reluctance,  from  my  quiet  home,  but  I  cannot  now  express  to 
you*  my  gratitude  for  the  invitation  or  the  pleasure  it  affords  me  to 
be  present.  You  will  excuse  me  from  making  a  speech  at  this  time. 
I  have  only  to  say  that  I  came  here  to  see  the  members  of  the  Shields 
Guard,  who  have  done  me  the  honor  to  keep  up  my  poor  name  for 
the  past  twenty-five  years.  I  wanted  to  take  each  member  by  the  hand 
and  thank  them  for  this  courtesy.  I  wanted  to  thank  the  citizens  of 
Auburn  for  their  kindness  toward  this  company,  which  bears  my  hum 
ble  name.  I  wanted  to  come  here  to  meet,  perhaps  for  the  last  time, 
the  Governor  of  the  grand,  noble,  old  "Palmetto"  State  of  South 
Carolina." 

Three  rousing  cheers  were  then  given  for  South  Carolina,  and 
then  the  General  continued  his  remarks,  concluding  by  introducing 
General  Wade  Hampton.  General  Hampton  excused  himself  from 
extended  remarks  and  briefly  alluded  to  the  object  of  his  visit — to 
bring  the  famous  flag  of  the  Palmetto  regiment,  that  it  might  be  borne 
in  the  procession  of  the  Shields  Guard.  His  remarks  were  greeted  with 
cheers,  and  the  soldiers  riled  away  to  join  the  line  of  march. 

The  line  formed  in  State  street  and  moved  at  n  o'clock,  under 
command  of  Chief  Marshal  Major  William  H.  Boyle  and  aids,  Colonel 
T.  J.  Kennedy,  Lieutenant-Colonel  C.  V.  Houghton,  Forty-eighth 
Regiment,  Oswego;  Major  R.  P.  Schooley,  Fifty-fourth  Regiment, 
Rochester;  Major  M.  Auer,  Yates  Dragoons,  Syracuse;  Commissary 
John  J.  Letchworth;  Chief  Engineer  James  H.  Norris,  Christopher 
Deering  and  Quartermaster  Frank  H.  Griswold.  The  line  moved 
into  Clarke  street.  The  following  is  the  formation  of  the  procession: 

Chief    Marshal. 

Fifty-fourth  Band  of  Rochester. 
Rochester    Zouaves,    Captain   Ward. 

Forty-ninth    Regiment   Band. 

Forty-ninth    Regiment    Drum    Corps. 

Forty-ninth  Regiment,  N.  G.  S.  N.  Y.,  Colonel  J.  E.  Storke. 

Storke  Cadets,  Major  Frank  Richardson. 
Seward  Post,   G.   A.    R.,   Commander  W.   E.   Webster. 

Auburn    City    Band. 
Auburn  Fire  Department. 

Carriages,  with  Superintendent  Pillsbury,  Warden  Welles  of  the  Prison, 
Mayor    McCrea     and    Common    Council. 

General  Shields  carried  the  flag  of  the  veteran  Palmetto  regiment 
of  South  Carolina  which  was  borne  by  that  gallant  organization  in 
the  Mexican  war.  The  line  of  march  led  to  Burt's  Grove,  in  the 
southern  part  of  the  city,  which  was  reached  at  \2  o'clock.  It  was 
there  that  the  exercises  of  the  day  were  held. 

The  distinguished  visitors  were  escorted  to  a  grand  platform. 
The  colors  of  the  Shields  Guard  and  the  famous  Palmetto  flag  were 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  k^77 

planted  on  the  platform,  and  the  sword  presented  to  General  Shields 
by  the  state  of  South  Carolina  for  his  gallantry  during  the  Mexican 
war  was  also  displayed.  It  attracted  much  attention,  both  on  account 
of  its  elegant  workmanship  and  its  associations.  The  sword  was 
inclosed  in  an  elegant  scabbard,  richly  ornamented  writh  jewels,  con 
taining  the  names  and  dates  of  the  several  engagements  in  which 
the  General  won  renown.  It  was  inscribed  as  follows:  "From  the 
State  of  South  Carolina  to  General  Shields,  in  testimony  of  her  admira 
tion  of  his  gallantry  in  the  Mexican  war,  and  as  a  tribute  of  gratitude 
for  his  parental  attention  to  the  Palmetto  Regiment." 

On  the  platform  were  seated  Governor  Robinson,  Governor 
Hampton,  General  Shields,  Hon.  T.  M.  Pomeroy,  Hon.  D.  C.  Rob 
inson,  Hon.  C.  N.  Ross,  Elmore  P.  Ross,  Esq.,  Mayor  McCrea,  the 
Board  of  Aldermen,  General  J.  N.  Knapp,  W.  J.  Moses,  Hon.  D.  A. 
Ogden  of  Penn  Yan,  Hon.  Clinton  Page  of  Binghamton,  Henry 
Stowell  of  Seneca  Falls,  F.  J.  Patten  of  New  York  Sun,  F.  H.  Hovey 
of  the  Rochester  Express,  Dr.  Bunce  of  Louisiana,  and  other  less 
noted  persons. 

Hon.  T.  M.  Pomeroy,,  ex-speaker  of  the  House  of  Representa 
tives,  was  the  first  to  deliver  an  address  from  the  platform.  He  spoke 
as  follows: 

"It  is  my  pleasure,  in  behalf  of  the  Shields  Guard,  to  extend  the 
most  cordial  welcome  to  all  their  invited  guests  here  present,  to 
honor  ihe  occasion  of  the  twenty-fifth  anniversary  of  their  organiza 
tion:  and  especially  to  you,  General  Shields,  the  distinguished  soldier 
and  statesman,  whose  name  they  bear,  and  to  Governors  Robinson 
and  Hampton,  the  compliment  of  whose  presence  is  a  compliment, 
indeed. 

"It  is  certainly  an  occasion  which  is  graced  by  the  presence  of 
the  governors  of  two  states,  which  were  represented  in  the  thirteen 
stars,  which  appeared  upon  our  national  flag,  when  first  unfurled  a 
hundred  years  ago.  The  simple  celebration  of  such  an  anniversary,  by 
a  single  company  of  the  National  Guard  of  New  York  in  a  quiet 
inland  city  like  ours,  would  assuredly  never  have  sufficed  to  have 
brought  together  upon  this  platform  two  gentlemen  thus  represent 
ing  the  executive  offices  of  the  states  so  widely  separated  by  distance 
and  so  little  related  in  material  industries  and  social  intercourse  as 
New  York  and  South  Carolina. 

"The  Shields  Guard  was  organized  soon  after  the  close  of  the 
Mexican  war,  while  yet  the  sounds  of  Palo  Alto,  Cerro  Gordo,  Churu- 
busco  and  Chapultepec  were  ringing  in  the  public  ear  like  the  echoes 
of  near  thunder.  It  was  a  war  unique  in  our  history.  It  is  the  only 
one  in  which  our  nation  has  been  engaged  that  was  fought  entirely,  or 
principally,  upon  foreign  soil.  The  invading  army  was  so  small 
that  each  regiment,  almost  each  officer,  preserved  an  individual  char 
acter  to  the  end.  Worth,  Hardin,  Shields,  and  their  gallant  com 
rades,  stand  out  as  plainly  as  their  commanders,  Scott  and  Taylor,  on 
the  page  of  history.  They  are  clearly  defined,  each  in  his  separate 
sphere,  as  separate  pieces  of  statuary  upon  a  common  pedestal.  When 
the  haze  of  three  centuries  shall  have  gathered  about  the  battlefields 
of  Mexico,  the  achievements  of  our  little  army  will  seem  to  posterity 
as  romantic,  as  now  to  us  appear  those  of  the  invading  army  of  Cortez. 

"The  Shields  Guard  was  organized  and  has  ever  remained  com 
posed,  mainly,  if  not  entirely,  of  citizens  of  Irish  descent.  No  wonder 
then,  that  in  casting  about  for  a  name,  they  should  have  adopted  that 
of  their  then  young  countryman,  who,  coming  here  a  boy,  an  alien  and 


278  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

a  stranger,  had  in  two  wars  gallantly  won  his  way  in  a  military 
promotion  from  a  simple  lieutenant  to  a  major-general,  and,  in  addi 
tion  had  won  such  advancement  in  the  field  of  politics  that  the 
great  state  of  Illinois  had  commissioned  him  to  represent 
them  in  the  Senate  of  the  United  States.  It  is  with  no 
common  pleasure,  therefore,  General  Shields,  that  to-day  your  pres 
ence  is  most  heartily  welcomed  here,  as  an  acknowledgment  on  your 
part  that  in  this  act  of  theirs  they  have  not  taken  your  name  in  vain. 

"And  I  may  say  here,  on  my  own  account,  tor  I  have  been  a 
resident  of  Auburn  during  the  whole  period  of  the  existence  of  this 
company,  and  all  of  our  citizens  will  concur  with  me  in  saying  it,  that 
at  no  time,  and  on  no  occasion,  have  the  Shields  Guard  done  discredit 
to  him  whose  honored  name  they  adopted. 

"They  none  the  less,  but,  rather  the  more,  appreciate  the  pres 
ence  of  Governors  Robinson  and  Hampton,  knowing,  as  they  do, 
that  it  is  a  deserving  token  of  respect  from  their  several  states  to  the 
distinguished  soldier  and  statesman  under  whose  inspiration  the  united 
regiments  of  the  Empire  and  Palmetto  states  were  held  to  the  bloody 
charge  which  contributed  so  much  to  the  victory  of  Churubusco, 
and  as  a  further  assurance,  on  the  part  of  their  several  states,  that 
under  the  same  command,  should  occasion  again  require  them  to 
defend  the  soil,  or  the  flag  of  the  Union-,  the  united  regiments  of 
both  states  will  not  be  wanting. 

"The  fragrance  of  the  blossoms  just  scattered,  by  common  con 
sent,  upon  the  graves  of  the  dead  of  our  Civil  War  will  ascend  as 
incense  to  the  patriotism  of  all  living;  and  the  common  consciousness 
of  all  reasonable  men  that  now  is  the  great  opportunity  for  the  devel 
opment  of  our  democratic  government  under  the  American  national 
ity  will  grow  into  inspiration  of  our  future.  The  unfortunate  oppor 
tunity  for  European  interference  with  American  institutions,  during 
our  division,  disappears  with  our  reunion,  and  the  Monroe  Doctrine 
again  becomes  the  Gibraltar  of  the  free  governments  of  the  Western 
Hemisphere. 

"A  confirmed  union,  universal  liberty  under  constitutional  guar 
antees,  and  absolute  freedom  of  national  development,  are  the  seeds 
gathered  for  us  from  the  threshing  floor  of  war,  and  though  \ye  may 
sow  tares  with  them,  the  same  heavenly  promise  that  has  given  to 
us  seed  time  will  secure  to  posterity  the  harvest.  Love  does  not 
flourish  in  the  soil  of  domestic  suspicion,  nor  patriotism  in  the  soil 
of  sectional  hate.  Our  war  is  ended.  God's  judgment  upon  our  great 
tiial  by  the  wager  of  battle  is  final.  The  record  is  made  up.  Its 
issues  cannot  be  retried.  Standing  on  that  judgment,  by  that  judg 
ment,  the  past  is  as  the  night,  the  present  as  the  morning,  and  the 
future  as  the  day. 

"And  to  you,  gentlemen,  citizens,  soldiers  of  the  National  Guard 
from  our  neighboring  cities  and  villages,  who  are  here  to  show  your 
kind  appreciation  of  the  soldierly  bearing  and  gentlemanly  deport 
ment  of  the  Shields  Guard  during  the  past  twenty-five  years;  and  to 
the  other  companies  composing  their  comrades  of  the  Forty-ninth 
Regiment,  including  its  promising  appendage  of  the  young  Storke 
Cadets,  and  to  the  firemen  of  our  city,  who  have  so  generously  united 
in  this  demonstration,  and  to  the  Mayor  and  Common  Council,  and 
our  citizens  generally,  I  tender  again  the  thanks  of  the  company. 

Mayor  McCrea  then  introduced  Governor  Robinson,  who  was 
received  with  enthusiastic  rounds  of  applause.  Governr  Robinson's 
address  of  welcome  to  Governor  Hampton  is  appended: 

"Mr.  Chairman  and  Fellow  Citizens:  I  appear  before  you  for 
the  purpose  of  introducing  to  you  a  distinguished  gentleman,  the 
Governor  of  the  State  of  South  Carolina,  and  of  welcoming  him  here 
to  our  state. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  279 

"Governor  Hampton,  I  am  aware  that  your  visit  here  is  unofficial 
and  prompted  by  motives  of  personal  friendship  to  the  venerable 
veteran  ot  the  Mexican  war  who  is  with  us,  and  to  the  military  organ 
ization  which  bears  his  honored  name.  But  I  cheerfully  avail  myself 
of  the  occasion  to  welcome  you  to  the  state  of  New  York. 

"In  doing  so  I  need  not  refer  to  events  that  have  passed  into 
the  history  ot  our  country,  nor  to  those  of  a  purely  political  character, 
but  only  to  those  of  recent  occurrence  and  of  national  importance. 
The  manly  and  heroic  qualities  which  you  have  shown  within  the  last 
six  months  have  established  your  fame  forever  in  the  hearts  of  the 
American  people.  When,  after  you  had  been  elected  governor  by  the 
people  of  South  Carolina,  you  found  the  capitol  of  your  state  in  pos 
session  of  federal  troops,  forbidding  your  entrance  and  compelling 
members  of  your  Legislature  to  pass  under  the  censorship  of  an 
armed  military  guard,  the  inevitable  popular  excitement  created 
thereby  spread  over  the  whole  country.  TJniversal  apprehension  and 
alarm  prevailed,  when  it  was  seen  that  a  single  indiscreet  word  would 
rekindle  the  flames  of  civil  war  and  again  deluge  the  land  with  blood. 
But  you  uttered  no  such  word  nor  performed  no  such  act.  With 
patience,  with  moral  courage,  and  with  absolute  self-command,  you 
met  the  storm  of  human  passion  and  arrested  its  progress.  With 
your  own  voice  and  your  well-deserved  magnetic  power  over  the  peo 
ple,  you  upheld  the  majesty  of  the  law.  You  preserved  the  peace, 
you  appealed  from  the  injustice  and  wrong  which  you  were  suffering 
to  the  reason  and  conscience  of  the  nation.  Your  appeal  was  heard, 
your  vindication  came.  Truth  and  justice  triumphed.  The  federal 
troops  no  longer  march  through  your  legislative  halls.  You  are 
fully  installed  in  the  possession  of  your  office  and  your  rights  as 
governor  of  the  state. 

"I  am  sure  that  1  speak  the  voice  of  the  Empire  State  when  I 
cnce  more  bid  you  welcome  to  her  soil,  alike  for  your  personal  worth 
and  your  high  position  in  the  gallant  state  of  which  you  are  the 
honored  chief.  In  these,  the  days  of  corruption  and  extravagance 
in  public  service,  New  York  is  proud  to  hail  you  as  the  chosen 
leader  of  your  people  in  the  war  waged  by  all  good  citizens  against 
official  malfeasance  and  legislative  traffic  in  the  rights  oi  men.  The 
record  of  your  life  assures  us  that  in  this  struggle  for  honest  gov 
ernment,  South  Carolina  could  have  no  nobler  chieftain,  and  New 
York  no  more  worthy  ally. 

"Fellow  citizens,  I  have  now  the  honor  to  present  to  you,  his 
excellency,  Wade  Hampton,  Governor  of  South  Carolina." 

Governor  Wade  Hampton  of  South  Carolina  was  then  introduced 
by  the  Mayor.  His  appearance  was  the  signal  for  a  spontaneous 
outbreak  of  applause. 

"Mr.  Chairman,  Your  Excellency  and  Fellow  Citizens  of  New 
York:  I  need  not  to  say  to  you  how  profoundly  I  have  been  touched 
by  the  too  flattering  remarks  of  the  gentlemen  who  have  presented 
me  to  you,  and  how  cordially  I  appreciate  the  compliments  they 
have  paid  my  native  state.  I  come,  as  your  Governor  has  said,  not 
in  an  official  capacity.  I  did  not  even  come  to  take  an  active  part 
in  the  demonstration  of  the  Shields  Guard  and  the  citizens  of  Auburn. 
I  came  solely  to  join  in  paying  honor  to  a  gallant  soldier,  and  my 
old  friend,  General  Shields.  I  came  at  his  request  to  bring  from 
South  Carolina  that  flag  which  waved  over  him  on  the  hills  and 
plains  of  Mexico — that  little  flag  which  derives  not  a  little  of  its 
luster  from  his  brilliant  achievements. 

"That  was  the  flag,  my  friends,  which  was  first  placed  on  the 
walls  of  the  City  of  Mexico,  over  the  halls  of  the  Montezumas.  It 
was  the  last  flag  to  wave  as  the  conquering  army  left  the  capitol,  the 


280  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

regiment  remaining  by  request  of  the   Mexican  city  authorities    and 
iorming  the   rear  guard. 

"That  regiment,  my  friends,  went  out  eleven  hundred  strong, 
comprising  the  best  blood  of  the  state — young  men  buoyant  with  lite 
and  hope.  It  returned  to  South  Carolina  with  but  220  men,  and  now 
but  a  small  number  of  them  are  left  to  guard  this  sacred  relic.  I 
am  sure  they  would  have  loaned  it  for  no  other  purpose  than  that 
it  might  do  honor  to  the  man  who  did  honor  to  it.  Your  dis 
tinguished  Governor  has  been  pleased  to  allude  to  the  contest  in 
South  Carolina.  That,  my  friends,  was  not  a  political  struggle;  it 
rose  'far  higher  than  any  such  contest  ever  waged  on  this  conti 
nent.  It  was  a  contest  for  civilization,  for "  home  rule,  good 
government,  for  life  itself.  It  was  a  contest  waged  by  the  people 
of  South  Carolina,  not  as  demagoguges  would  tell  you — against  North 
ern  men.  It  was  a  contest  waged  against  the  carpet-bagger;  and 
when  I  say  carpet-bagger,  I  mean  by  that  a  thief.  We  do  not  call 
any  Northern  man,  any  Irishman,  any  German,  any  Englishman,  who 
settles  in  our  midst  as  an  honest  citizen,  a  cai pet-bagger.  We  wel 
come  such  with  open  arms.  We  tell  them  to  come  to  our  genial 
skies  and  fertile  soil.  Come  one,  come  all,  and  I  pledge  them,  in  the 
name  of  the  state,  a  hospitable,  warmhearted  reception.  We  do  not 
ask  whether  they  are  Republicans  or  Democrats.  I  want  to  impress 
this  on  your  minds  and  will  do  it  by  an  illustration.  What  was  done 
by  the  Democratic  Legislature  of  South  Carolina  in  almost  its  first 
action?  A  vacancy  occurred  on  the  Supreme  Court  bench  of  the  state. 
A  chief  justice,  was  to  be  elected.  It  was  a  place  which  had  been 
filled  by  men  of  the  highest  reputation  in  our  commonwealth.  The 
names  of  honored  sons  of  Carolina  who  would  have  done  honor 
to  any  bench  in  the  country  were  presented;  but  that  Democratic 
Legislature  elected  to  the  Supreme  Court  a  citizen  of  New  York 
who  came  to  the  state  as  a  soldier  and  who  is  a  Republican. 

"What  further  proof  do  you  want  that  we  are  not  governed  by 
prescriptive  feeling?  Does  it  not  show  that  we  have  fulfilled  the 
pledges  and  promises  made  during  the  last  canvass  to  make  no 
distinction  on  account  of  race,  color,  or  party? 

"I  declared  that  if  I  should  be  elected  governor  of  the  whole  peo 
ple  of  South  Carolina,  that  I  would  know  no  race,  no  party,  no  color; 
that  all  men  who  stood  on  the  soil  of  North  Carolina,  native  or 
foreign  born,  white  or  black,  should  be  equal  before  the  law,  and, 
so  help  me  God,  it  shall  be  done. 

"I  am  glad  to  say  the  bitterness  which  marked  that  strife  is 
passing  away.  And  I  say  to  you,  men  of  New  York,  as  I  say  at  home, 
that  I  owe  my  election  to  the  colored  men  of  South  Carolina.  Thou 
sands  of  them  voted  for  me,  knowing  that  I  had  been  a  good  friend 
of  the  race;  knowing  that  I  was  the  first  man  after  the  war  to  recom 
mend  that  they  should  be  given  the  right  of  suffrage,  and  I  have 
never  yet  changed  my  opinion  on  the  subject.  Knowing  this,  they 
sustained  me  in  large  numbers,  and  I  am  happy  to  say  that  nearly 
all  the  fears  of  the  more  ignorant  are  passing  away  and  they  are 
satisfied  that  they  will  be  dealt  with  in  all  respects  as  citizens  of 
South  Carolina.  We  intend  to  try  to  elevate  them,  to  teach  them,  and 
show  them  the  responsibility  as  well  as  the  blessings  of  liberty. 
We  want  them,  as  other  citizens  of  America  and  South  Carolina,  to 
be  worthy  of  the  great  boon  of  citizenship  in  this  great  republic. 

"My  friends,  I  must  again  thank  you  for  this  most  cordial  greet 
ing,  doubly  gratifying  because  it  is  the  voice  of  New  York  reverberat 
ing  to  South  Carolina.  I  came,  as  I  said,  to  do  honor  to  my  dis 
tinguished  friend,  General  Shields.  He  wore  the  blue  and  I  wore 
the  grey,  but  we  can  let  the  curtain  drop  over  those  years  and  go 
back  to  the  time  when  that  flag  borne  by  him  waved  alike  over  men 
of  the  South  and  men  of  the  North.  And  I  say  this  to  you —  a  South- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  281 

ern  man  and  a  rebel,  who  fought  as  hard  as  he  knew  how  against 
you.  And  I  say,  also,  that  if  that  flag  floats  as  it  should  do  over 
free  and  equal  states,  if  it  shall  be  the  symbol  of  liberty  and  equality 
and  justice  to  all  the  states  and  to  every  man  in  every  state,  the 
men  of  the  South  will  honor  it  and  love  it  as  of  old,  and  the  time  may 
come  once  more  when  New  York  and  South  Carolina  shall  stand 
shoulder  to  shoulder  against  a  common  enemy  and  their  blood  mingle 
upon  the  soil.  My  friends,  I  shall  bear  the  cordial  greeting  back 
home  with  me  to  our  little  Palmetto  State,  and  assure  our  people 
that  your  hearts  here  throb  kindly  for  us.  I  trust  in  God  that  a 
better  future  is  before  the  whole  country,  and  that  we  shall  have 
peace,  liberty  and  prosperity  to  everyone  under  the  constitution." 

Mayor  McCrea  then  introduced  the  hero  of  the  day.  General 
James  Shields,  who  was  greeted  by  three  enthusiastic  cheers  and  a 
tiger.  His  true  Celtic  humor  and  eloquence  held  the  audience  to 
the  close. 

"Fellow  Citizens  and  Fellow  Soldiers:  I  left  my  home  the  other 
day  to  visit  Auburn,  expecting  to  make  the  acquaintance  of  the  Shields 
Guard  and  to  thank  them  for  the  honor  of  bearing  my  name.  I 
expected  to  make  the  acquaintance  of  many  people  of  Auburn  and 
thank  them  for  the  kindness  they  have  shown  during  all  these  years 
to  the  members  of  the  Shields  Guard.  But  such  an  occasion  as  this 
1  did  not  expect,  and  I  am  a  little  bewildered.  Such  a  brilliant  spec 
tacle  I  was  not  prepared  for.  I  did  not  dream  you  had  such  a  great 
city  here,  and  that  you  would  turn  out  to  give  such  a  welcome.  If 
there  is  one  company  in  America  that  ought  to  be  proud  to-day  it 
is  the  Shields  Guard  of  Auburn.  Here  is  the  Governor  of  your  great 
Empire  State  of  New  York;  a  man  that  I  was  more  anxious  to  see 
than  any  other  man  in  the  state.  Why?  Because  his  name  has  been 
borne  over  our  prairies  until  it  has  become  a  household  word  with  us, 
and  I  will  give  you  the  reason:  For  his  incorruptible  integrity,  for 
his  inflexible  purpose,  rising  above  the  pitiful  devices  of  the  politician, 
and  conducting  the  affairs  of  this  great  empire  in  the  interests  of  the 
whole  people. 

"He  is  here  to-day  to  welcome  the  Governor  of  old  gallant, 
chivalric  South  Carolina,  and  also  to  welcome  me. 

"This  company  deserves  a  great  deal  of  credit  for  what  they 
have  done;  not  because  they  have  kept  up  my  name,  though  I  am 
a  most  grateful  man  for  that — I  had  a  great  many  companies 
called  after  me  once,  but  when  I  went  into  obscurity,  they  went  into 
nothingness — and  their  captain  is  a  man  of  vim.  I  do  not  believe 
there  is  a  man  on  earth  who  could  have  dragged  me  from  home 
but  that  same  gentleman.  But  I  thank  him  .from  my  heart,  and  I 
thank  you,  citizens  of  Auburn,  for  bringing  me  here.  It  is  a  glorious 
day  in  my  life. 

"And  here  is  the  Governor  of  South  Carolina  come  to  honor  the 
anniversary — Wade  Hampton,  the  savior  of  his  state.  If  there  is  one 
man  in  America  who  should  be  welcome  in  the  State  of  New  York, 
that  man  is  Governor  Hampton.  There  does  not  live  a  people  more 
ready  to  appreciate  true  greatness  than  the  people  of  this  great  sov 
ereign  state.  He  has  redeemed  South  Carolina  without  doing  wrong 
to  any  man  or  class  of  men  of  any  color.  What  a  magnanimous 
example  to  the  other  states  of  the  Union.  Yes.  he  is  welcome  here, 
and  welcome  anywhere  in  this  broad  land.  He  is  a  representative 
man.  He  represents  his  own  state,  represents  American  manhood, 
represents  the  best  qualities  of  human  nature,  justice,  moderation 
and  true  American  conservatism.  Napoleon  once  said  of  one  of  his 
generals  that  if  he  had  a  hundred  of  such  men  he  would  place  France 
at  the  head  of  the  world.  If  we  had  a  succession  of  governors  like 


282  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

Robinson  and  Hampton,  it  would  place  America  at  the  head  of  the 
world. 

"Now  I  am  coming  in  for  a  large  share  of  praise,  for  all  this, 
and  that  bewilders  me.  I  am  not  a  governor,  or  a  distinguished  citi 
zen.  I  am  simply  a  private  citizen,  living  in  retirement  and  almost 
obscurity;  I  am  a  kind  of  a  farmer;  all  my  reputation  is  that  1 
am  an  honest  man,  and  about  the  poorest  farmer  in  Carroll  County. 
And  yet  this  has  a  great  significance  to  me.  It  has  a  great  many 
meanings.  Twenty-five  years  ago  this  company  was  organized  in 
Auburn.  It  assumed  my  name  and  emblazoned  it  on  its  standard.  It 
has  kept  up  that  name  tor  twenty-five  years.  It  keeps  it  up  now,  and 
that  company  has  not  sullied  that  name  from  that  day  to  this.  Sixty- 
seven  years  ago  I  was  born  to  the  inheritance  of  that  name.  I  have 
borne  it  for  sixty-seven  years,  through  all  the  trials  of  peace  and 
war.  Your  gathering  to-day  is  a  certificate  to  all  the  world  that  the 
name  you  bear  and  the  name  I  bear  is  still  unsullied.  Such  a  certifi 
cate  was  well  worth  a  visit  to  Auburn. 

"I  suppose  the  members  of  this  company,  like  myself,  are  nearly 
all  adopted  citizens,  and  I  tell  you  we  will  not  yield  to  any  native 
citizen  in  fidelity  to  the  United  States  government.  The  Irish  have 
proved  it  on  many  occasions,  on  every  battlefield  in  America  and 
in  all  countries,  I  believe.  They  are  fond  of  a  free  fight.  They  love 
a  battle  for  the  excitement  of  it,  not  from  the  love  of  carnage,  like 
the  savage,  or  a  Bashi-bazouk,  but  for  the  fun  of  the  thing.  I  will 
give  you  one  anecdote,  and  then  I  will  close.  Lord  Castlereagh,  when 
minister  at  Paris,  had  for  his  coachman  one  Tom  Doyle  of  Galway, 
and  he  was  just  the  man  for  Lord  Castlereagh.  He  would  have 
driven  a  four-in-hand  down  the  crater  of  Vesuvius.  One  day  his 
Lordship  was  out  in  the  vicinity  of  Paris,  taking  an  airing.  Tom 
v/as  driving  and  some  of  the  royal  family  were  in  the  carriage.  They 
passed  a  field  where  some  Frenchmen  were  fighting,  and  Tom  says, 
'Thim  Frenchmen  don't  know  how  to  fight  the  Galway  style.  Hould 
the  reins,  your  honor,  and  I  will  show  them  how  to  fight  in  civilized 
style.'  His  Lordship,  who  was  the  politest  man  in  all  Europe,  took 
the  reins  and  Tom  jumped  over  the  fence  and  laid  about  him  right 
and  left.  The  Fp-nchmen,  surprised  at  the  sudden  attack,  made  com 
mon  cause  against  the  invader.  After  half  an  hour's  engagement 
they  all  became  tired,  and  Tom  Doyle  was  allowed  to  retire  with  the 
honors  of  war.  When  he  came  back  I  do  not  think  such  a  spectacle 
was  ever  seen  in  France.  His  eyes  were  black,  his  nose  bloody,  his 
head  battered  to  a  jelly,  but  Tom  was  happy,  and  simply  remarked  that 
'he  had  not  had  such  an  illigant  time  since  he  left  Galway.'  " 

The  above  conveys  but  a  faint  idea  of  the  humorous  way  in 
which  the  rollicking  story  was  told.  In  conclusion,  the  veteran  again 
expressed  his  heartfelt  thanks  for  the  cordial  reception  and  the  kind 
ness  shown  him.  Cheers  greeted  the  conclusion  of  the  speech,  and  in 
response  to  calls,  Captain  Hcgan  of  the  Shields  Guard  spoke  as  follows: 

"Fellow  Citizens:  Allow  me,  in  behalf  of  the  Shields  Guard,  to 
return  to  you  my  most  heartfelt  thanks  for  this  grand  ovation.  Allow 
me  to  thank  the  visitors  from  Rochester,  Syracuse,  Oswego,  and  other 
places,  who  have  joined  in  the  celebration  to-day.  To  our  dis 
tinguished  visitors,  Governors  Hampton  and  Robinson,  we  are  grate 
ful  beyond  words  to  express  for  their  attendance  and  the  interest  they 
have  shown.  To  General  Shields,  whose  name  we  bear,  we  also 
return  our  thanks  and  pray  that  he  may  be  spared  many  years  in 
health  and  strength.  Mayor  McCrea,  the  Common  Council  of 
Auburn,  the  firemen  and  military,  I  thank  you  heartily  for  your  co-op 
eration  and  trust  we  will  be  able  to  repay  you  at  some  future  time." 

This  concluded  the  speaking  and  the  distinguished  persons  were 
escorted  to  the  home  of  Hon.  Charles  N.  Ross,  where  dinner  was 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  '^83 

served.  In  the  evening  a  reception  was  held  at  the  residence,  and 
more  than  4,000  people  shook  hands  with  General  Shields.  At 
the  state  armory  a  grand  ball  wound  up  the  day's  festivities.  Brief 
speeches  were  made  by  General  Shields  and  Governors  Robinson 
and  Hampton.  It  was  in  the  wee  sma'  hours  of  the  morning  of  the 
2ist,  when  the  honored  soldier  and  statesman  retired. 

General  Shields'  visit  to  the  "Loveliest  Village"  and  the  attending 
ceremonies  mark  an  important  event  in  the  history  of  Auburn. 


CHAPTER     XX. 


Speech  at  Banquet  Given  by  Meagher's  Irish  Brigade  on  the  Potomac 
— At  the  Tabernacle  in  Chicago — Great  Political  Address  Deliv 
ered  in  Kansas  City  on  Greeley  and  Brown — Letter  on  Home 
Rule  in  Ireland — Introduction  of  Jefferson  Davis  at  Sisters  of 
Charity  Fair. 

LECTURES    AND    ADDRESSES. 

The  noble  sentiments  that  actuated  the  brave  veteran 
at  that  time  may  be  gleaned  from  the  remarks  made  by 
him  at  a  banquet  given  by  the  Irish  Brigade  on  the  Poto 
mac,  commanded  by  General  Meagher. 

"I  was  in  New  Mexico  when  I  first  heard  of  the 
battle  of  Bull  Run.  I  read  the  account  in  a  Spanish 
newspaper  and  I  wouldn't  believe  it.  I  felt  it  must  be 
an  invention  of  our  enemies,  for  I  kne\v  that  the  Spanish 
were  the  most  persistent  haters  of  everything  American. 
I  had  fought  in  Mexico  alongside  of  Northern  men  and 
Southern  men,  and  I  knew  that  both  were  brave.  I  did 
not  believe  that  either  would  run  away,  and  if  any  man 
had  dared  to  tell  me  that  the  account  was  true  I  would 
have  knocked  him  down.  But  shortly  after  I  read  the 
account  in  our  own  papers  and  I  felt  humiliated.  I  de 
termined  at  once  to  come  and  offer  my  services  to  the 
government,  to  be  employed  in  any  way  in  which  I  could 
be  the  most  useful.  I  had  not  desired  to  again  enter 
the  field  of  conflict.  I  had  suffered  great  privations  in 
a  soldier's  life. 

"I  desired  to  spend  the  short  remainder  of  my  life 
in  peaceful  associations,  and  had  you  been  successful  I 
should  have  done  so.  But  when  I  saw  that  you  were  de 
feated,  when  I  saw  the  government  wdiich  had  so  long 


284  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

protected  me  and  from  which  I  and  mine  had  received 
such  great  kindness  was  in  danger  of  being  overturned 
by  the  hands  of  traitors,  I  determined  at  once  to  leave  my 
home  in  the  far  West  and  devote  what  little  blood  was  left 
in  me  and  the  few  years  that  remained  to  its  defense  and 
support.  For  the  future,  until  this  war  is  ended  and  the 
rebellion  overcome,  I  have  no  political  feelings  or  prefer 
ences.  Let  us,  I  beg  of  you,  during  this  conflict  have  no 
Democrats,  no  Republicans,  but  one  party,  and  that  for 
our  whole  country  in  all  its  integrity." — Irish  World. 

In  the  Tabernacle  in  Chicago  the  General  defined 
his  position  on  the  Irish  question  very  unmistakably.  He 
said: 

In  two  wars  he  had  shed  his  blood  for  that  flag 
(pointing  to  the  stars  and  stripes),  and  it  was  his  pride 
both  as  an  Irishman  and  American  soldier  that  he  had 
never  brought  a  stain  upon  its  folds.  ("True  for  you," 
and  continued  cheering.)  In  defending  that  flag  he  had 
received  four  .wounds,  the  marks  of  which  he  carried 
on  his  old,  war-worn  body — wounds  he  prided  in  because 
received  in  a  proud  cause,  maintaining  the  supremacy 
of  the  greatest  and  freest  flag  on  God's  broad  earth— 
(vehement  applause) — and  he  would  say  that  if  the  oppor 
tunity  came,  as  he  hoped  it  would  come,  old  as  he  was, 
he  would  be  willing  to  take  four  more  wounds  in  making 
that  flag  (pointing  to  the  Irish  colors)  a  free  flag — to 
float  above  a  country  and  a  people  free  as  the  great 
land  they  lived  in.  And,  continued  General  Shields,  no 
Irishman  can  be  true  to  the  American  flag  who  does  not 
honor  and  uphold  the  flag  of  his  native  country. 

In  the  course  of  his  address  he  said :  "On  the  hills 
of  Tyrone  there  roamed  an  Irish  lad — wild  as  any  hare 
that  ever  skirted  them — born  amid  wars  and  rumors  of 
war,  with  a  love  of  liberty  innate  in  the  Irish.  He  in 
boyhood  left  the  home  of  his  forefathers  to  seek  freedom 
where  it  existed — in  America.  Ten  years  later  he  was 
making  laws  with  Lincoln  and  Douglas.  Ten  years  later 
he  was  on  the  Supreme  Bench  of  Illinois.  Ten  years 
later  he  was  in  Mexico  with  Scott,  Taylor,  Wool,  Worth 
and  Ouitman,  and  in  the  Senate  of  the  United  States 
with  Wrebster,  Calhoun,  Clay,  Benton  and  other  giants, 
and  seventeen  years  afterward  met  and  defeated  Stonewall 
Jackson. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

GREELEY  AND  BROWN. 

Turner-Halle  Crowded  to  Repletion — Masterly  Speech  of  General 
James  Shields — The  Hero  Statesman's  Scathing  Review  of  the 
Iniquities  of  Grant's  Administration. 

The  fact  that  General  James  Shields,  the  hero-statesman,  would 
speak  at  Turner  Halle  last  .evening  had  the  effect,  notwithstanding  the 
rainy  weather,  of  filling  the  hall  with  as  large  a  number  of  the  sub 
stantial,  tax-paying  citizens  of  Kansas  City  as  have  ever  been  assem 
bled  together.  The  galleries  were  packed,  and  standing-room  could 
not  be  found  on  the  floor.  General  Shields  was  introduced  by  Mr. 
R.  W.  Hilliker,  president  of  the  Central  Greeley  and  Brown  Club 
of  Kansas  City. 

GEN.     SHIELDS'     SPEECH. 

He  said: 

This  is  a  time  when  men  who  love  their  country  better  than 
party  ought  to  speak  out  plainly.  At  a  crisis  like  this,  when  so  much 
is  at  stake,  it  is  inexcusable  in  any  man  who  feels  as  I  do  to  remain 
silent  or  indifferent.  For  this  reason  I  have  come  here  expressly 
to  exchange  views  with  you,  to  speak  my  mind  to  you,  and  to  con 
sult  with  you  about  our  duty  as  Democrats  in  the  approaching  cam 
paign.  My  mind  is  made  up  on  one  point:  If  we  want  to  rid  the 
country  of  Grant's  administration,  we  must  support  the  Liberal 
ticket.  A  third  ticket  is  an  absurdity,  and  the  Democrats  who  urge 
it  do  so  with  intent  to  betray  the  Democratic  party.  [Applause.]  As 
the  matter  now  stands,  there  is  no  alternative.  We  have  to  choose 
between  Greeley  and  Grant.  I  take  it  for  granted  that  our  first 
object  is  to  oust  the  administration.  Until  this  is  done  we  can  ac 
complish  nothing.  But  in  spite  of  its  sins,  perhaps  on  account  of  its 
sins,  the  administration  is  powerful  with  the  people,  and  will  take  a 
powerful  combination  to  defeat  it. 

It  will  take  a  combination  of  all  elements  of  opposition  in  Amer 
ica  to  wrest  this  country  from  the  deadly  grasp  of  the  ultra-Radical 
p?rty,  and  no  combination  would  be  able  to  effect  this  at  this  time, 
if  Grant's  administration  had  only  been  a  moderately  decent  success. 
But  it  has  not.  General  Grant,  as  President,  is  a  decided  fail 
ure.  His  administration  is  the  greatest  failure  in  our  polit 
ical  historv.  [Applause.]  He  has  had  glorious  opportunities 
to  make  himself  invincible  with  the  people,  but  the  man  was 
utterly  incamble  of  turning  them  either  to  his  own  advantage  or  the 
advantage  of  the  country.  The  day  he  took  his  seat  for  the  present 
term  in  the  presidential  chair  what  an  opportunity  this  man  had  to 
exait  himself  and  benefit  his  country.  The  whole  South,  from  the 
Potomac  to  the  Rio  Grande,  lay  prostrate  before  him,  bleeding  at 
every  pore.  He  saw  the  Southern  people,  people  of  his  own  blood  and 
race,  crushed  in  heart  and  broken  in  spirit,  with  their  eyes  turned  to 
him  at  Washington  as  next  to  God  their  only  hope.  As  chief  magis 
trate,  what  was  his  duty  toward  the  Southern  people  in  that  ex 
tremity?  What  was  his  duty  toward  them  as  an  American  soldier, 
as  a  Christian  gentleman?  To  raise  them  from  the  earth,  to  pour 
balm  into  their  wounds,  to  speak  hope  to  their  hearts,  and  to  restore 
them  to  the  fellowship  of  freemen  and  the  rights  of  free  born  Ameri 
can  citizens.  Had  General  Grant  done  this,  in  all  America  there 
would  be  no  opposition  at  this  time  to  his  reelection.  His  name 
would  be  blessed  in  the  South,  respected  in  the  North,  and  honored 
throughout  the  civilized  world.  But  the  man  is  by  nature  incapable 
of  any  great,  generous,  or  magnanimous  action.  [Applause.]  He 


28(5  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

preferred  to  give  up  his  time  to  fast  men  and  fast  horses,  and  to  other 
kindred  fast  attractions,  and  to  disport  himself  and  his  gift  carriages 
right  royally  at  Long  Branch  and  other  places  of  fashionable  dissipa 
tion;  and  he  abandoned  this  generous  people  to  the  tender  mercies 
of  a  ring  of  Radical  politicians,  who,  for  meanness,  rapacity,  and  vin- 
dictiveness.  have  no  equals,  I  am  happy  to  say,  among  the  descendants 
of  Europeans  on  this  continent,  and  very  few  among  the  descendants 
of  Africans  of  the  second  generation.  We  dare  not  call  this  a  political 
failure.  No,  it  is  far  worse — it  is  a  political  crime — -the  deepest  and 
darkest  in  our  political  history.  Well,  General  Grant's  management 
of  foreign  affairs  is  on  a  par  with  his  management  of  Southern 
affairs.  His  diplomatic  exploits  have  at  least  the  merit  of  novelty. 
His  first  experiment  was  on  San  Domingo.  San  Domingo  was  not  a 
success;  on  the  contrary,  it  was  a  disreputable  failure.  Even  Charles 
Sumner  of  Massachusetts  could  not  stand  it.  [Laughter.]  You  all 
know  it  is  a  tropical  island.  Well,  Charles  Sumner  has  tropical 
tastes.  He  is  extremely  partial  to  deep  colors,  and  San  Domingo  is 
deep  enough  in  point  of  color  to  suit  any  taste.  But  Charles  Sumner 
denounced  the  whole  thing  in  his  grand  way  as  a  grand  swindle  and 
a  grand  outrage.  Of  course,  it  was  both  a  swindle  and  an  outrage. 
But  there  was  nothing  grand  about  it.  It  was  simply  "a  pet  measure" 
of  the  administration  to  enrich  a  few  relatives  and  political  favorites, 
and  merely  violated  the  law  of  nations  and  the  Constitution  of  the 
United  States.  I  honestly  believe  that  our  worthy  President  is  in 
nocently  ignorant  of  the  very  existence  of  the  law  of  nations,  and 
he  has  himself,  both  as  General  and  President,  set  the  Constitution 
aside  so  often  under  the  standing  plea  of  "military  necessity,"  that 
he  ought  to  be  pardoned  for  happening  to  forget  that  such  a  thing 
as  a  Constitution  is  still  in  existence  in  this  country.  The  English 
treaty  was  the  next  great  diplomatic  achievement  of  the  administra 
tion.  Everybody  has  heard  of  the  English  treaty  and  of  our  claim 
for  consequential  damages.  Changes  have  been  rung  upon  this  treaty 
by  the  administration  press  of  the  country.  Indecent  boasts  were 
published  to  the  world  about  how  our  astute  diplomatists  had  out 
witted  John  Bull.  Grant's  superior  diplomacy,  it  was  said,  filled  the 
world  with  amazement.  There  was  amazement,  no  doubt,  but  it  was 
amazement  at  our  superlative  impudence,  unconscionable  cupidity  and 
preposterous  pretensions.  The  claim  was  pressed  with  brag  and 
bluster  and  vulgar  swagger,  that  were  perfectly  novel  in  civilized 
diplomacy.  But  when  our  commissioners  prepared  to  unfold  it  at 
Geneva,  it  was  saluted  with  an  outburst  of  ridicule  and  scorn  from 
universal  Europe,  that  made  the  administration  assure  us  they  are 
ashamed  of  themselves  at  last.  Now  they  are  hastening  to  withdraw 
it  all.  But  instead  of  acknowledging  their  mistake,  like  honorable 
men,  they  are  trying  to  wriggle  themselves  out  of  it  by  a  new  decep 
tion,  far  more  dishonorable  and  damaging  to  our  character  than  the 
original  blunder.  The  proposition  now  is  something  like  this:  "Gen 
tlemen  of  England,  our  claim  of  consequential  damages  for  the  ruin 
you  inflicted  upon  us  in  the  late  war  we  now  withdraw,  provided, 
always,  that  you  English  agree  to  make  no  claim  for  consequential 
damages  against  us  when  we  ruin  you  in  the  next  war."  Thus  ends 
this  second  diplomatic  achievement  of  our  incomparable  administra 
tion.  And  the  end  is  so  inimitably  ludicrous  and  discreditable  that 
it  will  provoke  the  mirth  and  scorn  of  Europe.  But  a  people  that 
can  stand  this  administration  are  able  to  stand  any  amount  of  old 
world  ridicule  and  scorn.  [Applause.] 

The  financial  policy  of  the  administration  is  even  worse  than 
their  foreign  diplomacy.  Our  revenue  system  is  more  extravagant, 
cumbrous  and  wasteful  than  any  other  system  of  the  kind  in  the  known 
world.  This  unsystematic  system  presses  with  dead  weight  upon 
every  branch  of  legitimate  human  industry. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  281 

In  Democratic  times,  especial  pains  were  taken  to  lay  the  principal 
burdens  upon  accumulated  wealth,  and  to  make  the  burdens  as  light 
as  possible  upon  labor  and  on  such  things  as  were  necessary  to  the 
furtherance  of  labor.  But  our  advanced  Radicals  have  changed  all 
this.  Accumulated  wealth  is  now  the  favored  interest;  and  the  power 
that  produces  wealth,  that  is,  human  labor  and  its  accessories,  are 
the  favorite  objects  of  Radical  taxation.  Even  here  in  the  favored 
Wesj:  agriculture  is  going  down  under  these  burdens.  Our  farmers 
are  struggling  bravely,  but  they  are  stowly  sinking  into  an  approach 
to  the  condition  of  the  agricultural  peasantry  .of  Europe.  The  condi 
tion  of  our  mechanics  is  even  worse  than  that  of  the  farmers,  because 
they  are  more  dependent  upon  capital.  They  are  sinking  gradually  into 
a  state  of  semi-servitude  to  capitalists.  If  this  goes  on  they  will  soon 
be  as  much  the  slaves  of  capital  as  the  machinery  with  which  they 
are  associated.  One  of  our  greatest  and  proudest  interests  has  gone 
down  already,  that  is  the  shipping  interest  of  the  country.  A  few 
years  ago  this  country  was  the  second  maritime  power  in  the  world, 
and  bid  fair  to  be  soon  the  first;  but  in  the  year  ot  grace,  1872,  we  can 
hardly  rank  with  the  very  lowest  of  the  second-rate  maritime  powers 
of  Europe.  The  people  know  this,  and  yet  the  agents  of  the  ruin 
continue  to  be  their  favorites,  and  while  pretending  to  represent  them 
they  are  in  reality  their  oppressors,  and  all  this  time  capitalists  are 
increasing  their  wealth  by  millions.  More  of  the  profits  of  labor 
finds  its  way  into  the  coffers  of  speculators  than  even  into  the  treasury 
of  the  United  States.  The  number  of  millionaires  is  increasing  an 
nually.  In  fact,  we  have  more  parvenu  millionaires  in  America  to-day 
than  in  all  the  rest  of  the  world  besides.  It  needs  no  great  foresight 
to  see  the  end  of  this  state  of  things.  The  end  will  be  inevitable, 
irretrievable  ruin.  But  the  cardinal  vice  of  the  administration  is  in 
curable  corruption.  The  fountainhead  of  this  corruption  is  Wash 
ington,  and  from  the  fountain  it  flows  through  every  branch  of  the 
public  service  of  the  country.  [Applause.]  The  public  service  is 
corrupt  from  top  to  bottom.  The  customhouses  are  a  disgrace  to 
the  character  of  the  country.  These  establishments  are  not  managed 
now  by  honest  men,  but  by  fast  men.  Peculation  and  imposition 
are  the  rule;  preying  and  bribery  the  system  of  these  favorites  of  our 
virtuous  President.  But  a  committee  of  Senators  say  this  thing  is 
all  right.  The  Leets  and  the  Murphys  are  honest  men,  who  never 
take  bribes.  They  deny  stoutly  that  they  take  anything  beforehand 
for  conferring  favors  or  bestowing  offices;  but  afterwards — after  the 
favors  have  been  conferred  and  the  offices  bestowed — why,  then,  if 
the  recipients  choose  to  present  them  with  money,  or  plate,  or 
horses,  or  carriages,  or  houses,  or  lands,  they  accept  them  graciously, 
not  as  bribes,  but  as  testimonials  of  gratitude.  [Laughter.]  If  they 
are  received  beforehand,  they  are  bribes;  if  they  accept  them  after 
wards,  they  are  gratifications.  We  must  not  forget  that  this  theory 
of  customhouse  ethics  has  received  the  endorsement  of  a  committee 
of  United  States  Senators,  and  it  is  well  to  know  that  this  endorsement 
is  in  perfect  conformity  with  the  standard  of  official  morality  in 
Washington.  If  the  American  people  embrace  the  theory  and  accept 
the  standard,  why  the  farce  is  played  out.  The  republic  is  not  worth 
saving.  It  must  take  its  place  in  that  shining  circle  of  republics 
lying  south  of  us  On  this  continent.  Sic  transit  gloria  mundi. 

The  all  important  question  now  is,  are  there  honest  men  enough 
left  to  put  down  the  corruptionists — is  there  virtue  enough  left  in 
this  republic  to  save  it?  This  election  will  answer  this  question.  If 
the  country  is  sound  at  the  core,  the  Liberal  ticket  will  succeed — 
not  because  the  politicians  want  it,  but  because  the  people  have  faith 
in  it.  Let  it  be  understood  at  the  outset  that  the  professional  poli 
ticians  of  America  are  not  for  this  ticket.  They  have  not  been  con 
ciliated  at  Cincinnati.  The  people  see  through  ths  millstone.  They 


2SS  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

know  what  this  means,  and  rejoice  that  they  have  not  been  con 
ciliated.  What  the  honest  men  of  both  parties  want  at  this  time  is 
to  raise  the  South  and  put  down  corruption.  The  best  platform  that 
could  be  made  for  this  purpose  is  the  Cincinnati  platform,  and  the 
best  men  that  could  be  put  on  that  platform  to  do  the  work  are 
Horace  Greeley  of  New  York  and  B.  Gratz  Brown  of  Missouri. 
[Continued  applause.]  But  some  of  our  self-constituted  leaders  ob 
ject  to  them  because  they  are  genuine  Republicans.  Well,  the  people 
are  glad  of  this,  for  they  are  tired  of  sham  Republicans.  Jerferson 
said  that  we  are  all  Republicans  and  all  Democrats.  This  is  emphati 
cally  true  of  Horace  Greeley.  He  is  a  born  Democrat  and  a  genuine 
Republican.  He  is  the  natural  foe  of  every  kind  of  oppression ;  he 
abhors  proscription  and  persecution;  he  makes  war  to  the  knife  on 
every  kind  of  rascality;  he  is  for  the  weak  against  the  strong,  for  the 
oppressed  against  the  oppressor,  and  for  the  poor,  the  friendless  and 
the  wretched  against  the  world.  This,  I  take  it,  is  true  democracy 
as  well  as  genuine  republicanism. 

The  gallant  South  has  no  truer  friend  at  this  time  than  Horace 
Greeley.  As  soon  as  he  became  convinced  that  the  Southern  people 
were  wronged  and  slandered,  he  declared  himself  the  friend  of  the 
South.  When  Jeff  Davis,  in  his  sore  need,  was  without  a  friend 
in  the  North  who  would  incur  the  odium  of  giving  security  for  him, 
brave  old  Horace  Greeley  wended  his  way  to  Richmond  and  pre 
sented  himself  as  bail  for  that  fallen  statesman.  The  South  is  not  the 
country  in  which  an  act  of  this  kind  is  ever  forgotten.  He  is  just  the 
man  for  the  country  now.  He  is  the  man  of  destiny  to  abolish  rings, 
stamp  out  corruption,  and  restore  to  the  rule  of  the  Constitution. 
The  rule  of  the  bayonet  will  be  relegated  to  the  Rocky  Mountains  to 
protect  the  frontiers  and  watch  the  Indians. 

Horace  Greeley  has  sterling  qualities  but  the  best  of  them  all  is 
his  incorruptible  integrity.  "Greeley  the  Incorruptible"  is  the  man 
for  this  campaign — tor  this  is  a  war  against  universal  rascality. 
[Loud  applause.]  The  people  have  sworn  in  their  wrath  to  put  down 
corruption.  Fortune  has  given  them  the  best  man  in  America  for 
that  work,  and  in  spite  of  old  political  hacks — Democratic  or  Re 
publican — the  people  will  make  Horace  Greeley  President  of  the 
United  States. 

Our  own  Gratz  Brown  is  the  best  man  in  the  country  to  help 
to  carry  the  standard  in  this  war  of  purification.  He  has  already 
borne  it  aloft  in  our  own  Missouri,  and  the  result  is  the  redemption 
of  the  state.  Brown  and  Schurz  have  done  for  Missouri  what  Greeley 
and  Brown  will  do  for  the  country.  The  Radical  ring  that  ruled  here 
was  even  meaner  and  more  vicious  than  the  Washington  ring,  but 
Brown  and  his  hosts  of  Liberals  and  Democrats  wiped  them  out  in 
one  campaign.  These  tyrants  of  the  gutter  are  so  low  now  that  a 
decent  Missouri  dog  would  be  ashamed  to  bark  at  them.  B.  Gratz 
Brown  is  one  of  the  wisest  political  leaders  in  America.  The  move 
ment  he  made  in  Cincinnati  smashed  the  Washington  slate,  and  gave 
us  a  candidate  of  the  people,  in  place  of  the  candidate  of  the  poli 
ticians,  and  this  insures  victory.  The  politicians  will  have  to  face  the 
music.  They  must  keep  the  step  in  the  ranks  of  Grant  or  Greeley. 
There  is  no  room  for  a  third  party  in  the  present  programme.  The 
National  Democratic  Committee  have  given  us  fair  warning.  We 
now  know  what  Baltimore  means.  It  means  a  third  ticket,  and  every 
man  in  America  outside  of  a  lunatic  asylum  knows  that  a  third  ticket 
would  result  in  the  election  of  U.  S.  Grant.  Let  the  Democracy  of 
Missouri  speak  out  at  once  and  speak  out  boldly.  Illinois  will  follow 
suit.  Let  the  cry  go  forth  that  a  third  ticket  in  the  field  means  the 
election  of  Grant.  The  great  body  of  the  Democracy  is  for  Greeley, 
and  let  foolish  leaders  play  what  game  they  please,  the  American 
people,  either  with  leaders  or  without  leaders,  will  make  Horace 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  289 

Greeley  next  President  of  the  United  States.     [Long  and   continued 
cheering.] 

GENERAL    SHIELDS    ON    SELF-LEGISLATION    FOR    IRE 
LAND. 

We  are  enabled  to-day  to  present  to  our  readers  a  letter  from 
the  distinguished  Irish-American,  General  Shields,  whose  career  in 
the  land  of  his  adoption  has  been  so  fraught  with  credit  to  himself, 
both  as  a  soldier  and  a  legislator,  and  with  honor  to  the  old  country 
to  which  he  has  ever  clung  with  the  affection  of  a  true  and  loving 
child.  General  Shields  addresses  this  letter  to  his  nephew,  Mr. 
James  Shields,  of  Altmore,  Cappagh,  and  it  must  be  pleasing  to  find 
that  he  is  in  such  harmony  with  the  movement  for  Home  Rule. 
Mr.  Gladstone  will  do  well  should  he  take  the  counsel  of  this  ex 
perienced  officer,  and  discharge  the  political  prisoners;  for  to  punish 
when  the  necessity  for  punishment  has  passed  away  is  not  only  ab 
horrent,  as  General  Shields  ably  points  out,  to  American  sentiment, 
but  is  repugnant  to  humanity  in  all  countries.  Our  readers  will  derive 
pleasure  and  encouragement  from  this  letter,  for  the  opportunity  to 
publish  which  we  are  indebted  to  Mr.  James  Shields. 

AN  INTERESTING  DOCUMENT. 

LETTER     OF    THE    VETERAN     GENERAL    SHIELDS     ON 

HOME  RULE. 

We  have  great  pleasure  in  publishing  the  following  copy  of  a 
letter  recently  written  by  the  veteran  warrior,  our  illustrious  country 
man,  General  James  Shields,  of  the  United  States  Service,  to  a  near 
relative  of  his  in  this  country.  It  is  worthy  of  the  noble  Irish  heart 
of  the  gallant  soldier,  who,  amid  all  his  splendid  services  to  'the 
land  of  his  adoption,  has  never  forgotten  or  ceased  to  love  the  land 
of  his  birth.  We  hope  God  may  spare  him  to  witness  the  realization 
of  his  fondest  wishes — the  legislative  independence  of  his  native  land. 
We  publish  in  another  column  a  biographical  sketch  of  the  dis 
tinguished  author  of  the  following  letter: 

Carrollton,  Mo.,  U.  S.,  November  24,  1873. 

Dear  Nephew: — Your  last  letter  and  the  Belfast  papers  accom 
panying  it  have  given  me  a  good  deal  of  interesting  information  about 
the  Home  Rule  movement.  From  present  indications  it  seems  to  be 
gaining  ground  rapidly  amongst  the  Irish  people.  But  will  the  Pro 
testants,  as  a  body,  unite  with  the  Catholics  on  this  Home  Rule 
question?  You  know  a  union  of  Catholics  and  Protestants  on  any 
question,  even  one  affecting  the  honor  and  interest  of  the  country, 
would  be  a  new  fact  in  Irish  history.  The  day  that  witnesses  a  union 
of  this  sort  will  be  a  glorious  day  for  Ireland.  On  that  day  the  Irish 
people,  both  Catholic  and  Protestant,  will  take  a  high  place  among 
the  peoples  of  the  world.  If  Home  Rule  means  nothing  more  than 
that  the  Irish  people  shall  have  the  legislative  control  of  their  own 
local  affairs,  the  claim  seems  so  just  and  reasonable  that  the  only 
.  wonder  here  is  that  it  encounters  any  serious  opposition  even  in 
slow,  conservative  England,  but  that  it  should  meet  with  opposition 


290  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

from  Irishmen  of  any  class  or  creed  is  something  that  fairly  puzzles 
the  wisest  heads  on  this  side  of  the  Atlantic.  In  this  country,  Home 
Rule — or  local  self-gcvernment,  as  it  is  called — is  perfectly  understood 
in  principle  and  firmly  established  in  practice,  'ihe  people  here  re 
gard  it  as  the  very  life-principle  of  their  political  system.  It  is  to 
the  powerful  influence  of  Home  Rule,  operating  in  every  part  of  the 
country,  that  they  attribute  the  rapid  development  of  new  states,  the 
general  prosperity  of  old  ones,  and  the  freedom  and  stability  of  the 
whole  iJnion.  A  system  that  works  so  advantageously  in  America 
will  not  be  likely  to  operate  disastrously  in  Ireland.  The  experiment 
of  suffering  a  people  to  manage  their  own  affairs  in  their  own  way 
has  never  yet  entirely  failed  in  any  country,  while  the  opposite  ex 
periment  of  regulating  the  affairs  of  one  people  in  accordance  with 
the  views  and  interests  of  another  people  has  never  yet  entirely  suc 
ceeded  in  any  country.  This  latter  experiment  has  been  in  full  opera 
tion  in  Ireland  for  centuries,  and  I  venture  to  assert  that  there  could 
hardly  be  found  in  that  entire  island  this  day,  outside  of  an  Orange 
lodge  or  an  insane  asylum,  twelve  good  and  lawful  men  who  would 
be  willing  to  say  upon  their  oaths  that  the  experiment  has  been  a 
success.  If  you  succeed  in  establishing  Home  Rule  in  Ireland,  I 
venture  the  prediction  that  in  less  than  a  quarter  of  a  century  there 
after  it  wrill  be  as  popular  in  the  United  Kingdom  as  it  is  at  present 
in  the  United  States.  It  is  very  evident  to  us  here  that  there  is  a 
wonderful  improvement  in  the  general  character  of  the  Irish  people. 
The  Americans  say  that  you  have  a  new  Ireland  now  on  your  side 
of  the  Atlantic  and  that  we  have  the  old  Ireland  here  on  our  side. 
Certain  it  is  that  the  conduct  of  your  popular  assemblies  and  the 
character  of  your  public  proceedings  indicate  a  remarkable  improve 
ment  amongst  the  people  in  self-discipline,  moderation,  and  self-respect. 
This  moral  change  has  made  the  Irish  a  very  formidable  people. 
This  fact  is  noticed  here,  but  seems  to  be  unobserved  and  unheeded 
on  the  other  side  of  the  Channel.  The  truth  is,  they  are  beginning 
to  understand  the  greatest  of  modern  secrets — the  all-achieving 
potency  of  moral  force.  No  man  that  ever  lived  understood  the 
tremendous  power  of  this  mysterious  force  better  than  O'Connell. 
If  the  Irish  of  to-day  are  able  to  manage  this  moral  weapon  with 
greater  skill  and  employ  it  with  greater  efficiency  in  public  affairs 
than  any  other  people  in  Europe,  they  owe  it  to  the  sublime  teaching 
of  that  extraordinary  man  and  to  the  imperishable  influence  of  his 
example  upon  the  character  and  conduct  of  his  countrymen.  Depend 
upon  it,  the  great  moral  conquests  of  the  future  are  destined  to  be 
achieved  by  moral  force. 

To  the  friends  of  Home  Rule  I  take  occasion  to  say  you  have 
the  sympathies  of  the  whole  American  people  with  you  in  your  present 
movement.  No  other  people  on  earth  have  such  moral  backing  at 
this  time  as  you  have,  But,  as  brave  men  and  true  men,  as  Irishmen 
and  Christians,  try  to  prove  yourselves  worthy  of  this  noble  sympathy. 
Religious  dissensions,  political  divisions,  sectional  antipathies  and 
class  animosities  have  been  the  curse  and  shame  of  Ireland,  and  have 
made  a  people,  as  highly  gifted  by  nature  as  any  in  the  world,  a  by 
word  among  civilized  nations.  You  have  a  glorious  opportunity  to 
redeem  the  character  of  your  country,  and  the  men,  whatever  their 
rank,  who  oppose  the  attempt,  are  Helots  in  soul  and  unworthy  of 
Ireland.  Be  true  to  Liberal  principles,  be  true  to  the  Liberal  party; 
all  this  talk  in  Europe  about  reaction  is  but  the  very  drivel  of  dis 
appointed  imbecility  and  incapacity.  In  human  society  there  must  be 
progress  or  decadence;  there  can  be  no  reaction.  Then  hold  fast  by 
the  party  of  progress,  have  nothing  to  do  with  reaction,  which 
Europeans  call  Conservatism.  Mr.  Gladstone,  the  leader  of  the  Lib 
eral  party,  is  a  man  of  splendid  talents;  he  is  regarded  in  this  coun 
try  as  not  only  the  ablest  man  in  Britain,  but  the  ablest  Liberal 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  Ml 

statesman  of  the  age.  I  think  he  is  far  better  appreciated  in  this  coun 
try  than  in  either  Great  Britain  or  Ireland.  The  leading  measures 
of  his  administration  have  effected  some  very  substantial  reforms, 
and  have  initiated  a  system  of  policy  that  must  eventuate,  by  a  kind 
of  logical  necessity,  in  the  separation  of  Church  and  State  and  a  radical 
reform  of  the  land  laws  of  the  country.  But,  highly  as  Mr.  Gladstone 
is  esteemed  in  America,  there  is  one  act  of  his  administration  that 
meets  with  the  unqualified  condemnation  of  the  whole  American  peo 
ple — that  is,  holding  the  wretched  remnant  of  the  political  prisoners 
in  captivity.  The  judgment  of  America  is  like  the  judgment  of  pos 
terity  for  Mr.  Gladstone,  and  that  judgment,  so  favorable  to  him 
generally,  is  dead  against  him  on  this  one  point.  The  distinction  in  guilt 
between  soldiers  and  citizens,  when  the  offense  is  the  same,  may  do 
for  Old  Bailey,  but  will  not  do  before  the  tribunal  of  public  opinion, 
the  tribunal  of  history,  or  the  great  tribunal  of  mercy.  To  persist  in 
punishment  when  all  necessity  for  punishment  has  ceased  is  abhorrent 
to  American  sentiment. 

The  sooner  Mr.  Gladstone  repairs  this  fault  the  better  for  his 
character  as  a  man  and  his  reputation  as  a  statesman.  I  have  been 
tempted  to  write  this  letter  from  the  interest  I  take  in  the  affairs 
of  my  native  land;  but  I  am  so  thoroughly  American  that  I  write 
in  the  spirit  of  this  country,  and,  if  this  spirit  appears  a  little  ex 
travagant  to  you  in  some  things,  I  know  you  will  be  disposed  to  make 
an  allowance  for  it. 

Your  affectionate  uncle, 

JAMES  SHIELDS. 

Mr.  James  Shields,  Altmore,  Cappagh, 
County   Tyrone,    Ireland. 

Carrollton,  Carroll  Co.,  Mo.,  May  16,  1879. 

Gentlemen : — I  regret  that  I  cannot  unite  with  you 
in  celebrating  Thomas  Moore's  centenary.  The  Irish  race 
owes  an  unspeakable  debt  to  his  memory.  He  found  the 
Irish  music,  like  the  Irish  language,  perishing,  and  saved 
it  for  the  world  by  embalming  it  in  immortal  verse.  The 
exquisite  airs  of  his  own  land  were  the  wings  upon  which 
he  floated  his  matchless  melodies,  and  these  wings  carried 
his  songs,  burning  with  Irish  patriotism,  through  all  the 
homes  and  halls  of  the  refined,  enlightened  and  liberal 
society  of  the  Christian  world.  The  effect  of  this  at  the 
time  upon  Irish  life,  Irish  character,  and  even  Irish 
politics,  was  prodigious.  Herein  Thomas  Moore  is  an  ex 
ample  of  what  one  man  of  fine  and  exquisite  genius  can 
do  to  exalt  the  reputation  of  a  whole  people.  This  ex 
ample  should  stimulate  young  and  gifted  sons  of  the  same 
land  to  save  the  reputation  of  their  race  from  the  impu 
tation  of  inferiority  in  any  field  of  human  effort  to  any 
other  race  on  earth. 

Yours  sincerely, 

JAMES  SHIELDS. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

At  a  festival  held  by  the  Sisters  of  Charity  to  raise  funds  to 
build  a  new  hospital  in  Kansas  City,  after  the  war,  Jefferson  Davis, 
being  in  the  city,  was  invited  to  honor  the  occasion  with  his  pres 
ence,  and  General  Shields  was  selected  to  introduce  him.  In  pre 
senting  him  to  the  vast  audience,  the  General  said:  "It  is  with  no 
ordinary  pleasure  I  introduce  to  you  my  old  comrade,  one  whom  I 
was  associated  with  in  the  army,  in  the  United  States  Senate,  and  in 
private  life,  and  who  is,  to-day,  the  best  living  exponent  of  true 
Southern  sentiment,  and  who  has  it  in  his  power  to  do  more  than 
any  man  this  side  of  eternity  to  bring  about  the  era  of  good  feeling 
between  the  different  sections  of  our  country — Mr.  Jefferson  Davis." 
Mr.  Davis  was  greeted  with  loud  applause,  and  in  .the  course  of  his 
remarks  said: 

"It  is  highly  pleasing  to  me  to  be  commended  to  you  by  one 
like  General  Shields,  a  gentleman  who  sprang  from  a  heroic  race,  and 
whose  name  would  forever  shed  luster  on  that  race.  The  bravery, 
the  valor  of  that  race,  has  been  shown  on  every  battlefield."  Refer 
ring  to  the  object  of  the  festival,  he  said:  "Yours  is  a  noble  charity. 
Although  I  am  a  Protestant,  I  have  always  admired  the  Catholics; 
they  are  the  foremost  to  help  those  who  cannot  help  themselves." 
He  also  expressed  surprise  at  the  magic  growth  of  this  city,  and 
said  our  liberality  knew  no  bounds.  Mr.  Shields  and  Mr.  Davis, 
while  on  the  platform,  alluded  in  a  feeling  manner  to  old  times, 
especially  the  times  during  the  Mexican  War,  when  they  both  fought 
under  the  Stars  and  Stripes. 


CHAPTER     XXL 


Lecture  at  St.  Joseph,  Mo.,  on  St.  Patrick's  Day — Lecture  in  Steinway 
Hall,  New  York,  on  St.  Patrick's  Day — Speech  at  St.  Joseph, 
Mo.,  on  the  Fourth  of  July. 


LECTURE  BY  GENERAL  JAMES  SHIELDS  AT  ST.  JOSEPH, 

MISSOURI. 

A  lecture  was  delivered  on  March  I7th  at  St.  Joseph,  Missouri,  by 
General  Shields.  The  hall  was  crowded  to  its  utmost  capacity,  and 
the  greatest  enthusiasm  prevailed  on  the  question  to  be  spoken  on 
by  the  General.  After  referring  to  the  religious  associations  connected 
with  the  day,  the  gallant  General  thus  continued: 

On  the  other  side  of  the  Irish  Channel  there  is  another  people, 
who  stand  justly  high  in  the  estimation  of  the  world — I  mean  the 
English  people.  And  I  have  nothing  to  say  against  the  English  as  a 
people.  Some  centuries  after  the  conversion  of  the  Irish,  St.  Augus 
tine,  a  Christian  monk  and  missionary,  was  sent  to  England  to  en 
deavor  to  convert  the  inhabitants.  He  succeeded,  under  God,  in  his 
mission.  The  Saxons,  Angles,  and  Danes,  who  then  inhabited  the 
country,  and  the  ancestors  of  the  present  English,  were  converted 
through  his  instrumentality  to  the  Christian  faith.  This  is  the  year 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

of  our  Lord,  1868,  and  in  this  year  of  grace  you  may  travel  through 
England  from  Land's  End  to  the  Scotch  Border,  and,  I  venture  to 
assert,  you  will  not  find  on  that  whole  route  one  Englishman  in  every 
ten  who  has  ever  heard  the  name  of  St.  Augustine  mentioned  in 
England,  or  who  can  tell  by  whom,  at  what  time  or  in  what  manner, 
his  ancestors  were  converted;  and  the  chances  are  that  you  will  sub 
ject  yourself  to  frequent  insult  if  you  venture  to  intimate  that  the 
English  people  ever  needed  any  conversion,  and  especially  if  you  in 
sinuate  that  they  are  indebted  to  a  monk  for  their  Christianity. 
[Applause.]  Then  across  the  Channel  to  Ireland,  and  travel  through 
that  country  from  Cape  Clear  to  the  Giant's  Causeway,  and  every 
Irishman  you  meet  will  be  able  to  tell  you  all  about  St.  Patrick. 
How  he  converted  his  heathen  ancestors,  and  how  he  drove  the 
snakes  all  out  of  Ireland,  and  they  have  no  snakes  there  now;  barring 
the  spies  and  informers,  and  policemen,  and  other  satellites  of  the 
English  government.  [Tremendous  applause.]  I  will  not  ask  you  to 
tell  me  which  character,  as  between  these  nations,  is  in  this  particular 
instance  most  commendable,  but  I  will  only  say  that  nothing  is  more 
astonishing  than  that  these  noble  traits  of  Irish  character,  which 
give  the  highest  proof  of  moral  excellence  and  native  capacity,  are 
sadly  misunderstood  and  poorly  appreciated  by  the  whole  universal 
English  race.  There  is  not  a  more  striking  contrast  in -history  than 
the  success  of  St.  Patrick,  and  the  failure  of  the  English  government 
in  the  management  of  the  Irish  people.  [Cheers.]  The  policy  of  the 
former,  if  policy  it  can  be  called,  was  based  on  truth  and  justice,  and 
with  this  he  succeeded  in  winning  the  hearts,  and  in  converting  and 
civilizing  the  people,  in  a  life-time.  The  policy  of  the  latter  has  been 
the  opposite  of  all  this,  and  the  effect  of  this  policy  has  only  suc 
ceeded  in  making  the  same  people  the  most  unmanageable,  discon 
tented  and  rebellious  people  in  Europe.  [Cheers.]  English  gov 
ernment  in  Ireland  is  one  of  the  greatest  failures  in  history.  It  has 
failed  to  crush,  and  it  has  failed  to  conciliate.  Why  does  not  England 
try  the  policy  of  St.  Patrick,  even  by  way  of  experiment?  There  is 
but  one  solution  of  the  Irish  difficulty,  but  I  fear  British  rulers  will 
never  find  it.  [Cheers.]  And  from  present  appearances  they  are  as 
far  from  it  now  as  they  were  in  the  seventeenth  century.  Perhaps 
the  redemption  of  Ireland  may  not  be  as  far  off  as  some  of  those  rulers 
imagine.  We  begin  to  think  on  this  side  of  the  water  that  the  day 
of  its  deliverance  is  approaching.  [Cheers.]  We  know  that  there  is 
a  wonderful  vitality  in  the  Irish  race — that  it  possesses  astonishing 
powers  of  resistance  and  recuperation.  It  is  hard  to  exterminate,  hard 
to  subjugate  and  easy  to  conciliate.  It  may  bound  up  some  of  these 
days  and  astonish  the  world.  [Thundering  applause.]  There  is  a 
general  opinion  in  this  country  that  it  is  preparing  for  such  a  bound. 
There  is  an  impression  among  us  that  upon  the  first  favorable  op 
portunity,  the  first  general  convulsion  in  Europe  will  witness  the 
deliverance  of  Ireland  or  the  downfall  of  the  British  Empire,  or 
perhaps  both  events  together.  [Cheers.]  I  wish  to  say  in  this  place 
that  I  am  no  Fenian,  and  have  never  belonged  to  that  order,  but  I 
think  I  understand  thoroughly  the  spirit  that  animates  that  body. 
It  is  the  avenging  spirit  of  the  Irish  race  (cheers),  and  I  believe  in 
my  soul  that  in  some  shape  or  other,  that  spirit  will  continue  to  haunt 
the  English  government,  disturb  the  peace  of  English  society,  and 
wage  war  without  truce,  open  or  secret,  against  English  authority 
until  the  rulers  of  that  country  consent  to  do  ample  and  complete 
justice  to  the  people  of  Ireland.  I  repeat,  I  am  not  a  Fenian.  In 
common  with  millions  of  my  countrymen,  I  find  myself  unable  to 
approve  of  the  secret  character  of  that  organization.  We  think,  with 
reason,  that  the  wrongs  of  Ireland  are  known  to  the  world,  and 
that  effort  to  right  their  wrongs  should  be  made  in  the  face  of  the 
world,  and  in  the  clear  light  of  day  (cheers).  We  are  also  convinced 


294  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

that  secret  conspiracy  in  any  form  is  not  adapted  to  Irish  character. 
A  weak,  subtle  and  suspicious  race  may  find  it  politic  to  resort  to  it 
for  the  purpose  of  overthrowing  a  hated  government,  but  a  bold,  frank, 
unsuspicious  race  like  the  Irish,  can  never  employ  it  successfully 
(applause).  Though  unfitted  by  its  manliness  and  generosity  for  secret 
conspiracy  of  any  kind,  there  is  still  another  and  a  stronger  objection 
to  it  on  the  part  of  those  who  adhere  strictly  to  the  Catholic  faith. 
The  Catholic  Church  disapproves  positively  of  every  form  of  secret 
organization  or  political  organizations  for  political  purposes.  Eight 
een- centuries  of  universal  experience  in  human  affairs  have  convinced 
that  enlightened  body  that  secret  societies  are  liable  to  gross  abuse, 
and  certain  to  be  perverted  to  unwarrantable  purposes.  It  has,  there 
fore,  concluded,  in  its  wisdom,  to  put  its  seal  of  disapprobation  upon 
them  all.  This  is  an  insuperable  objection  with  conscientious  Cath 
olics,  arid  is  entitled  to  considerable  weight,  even  with  reflecting 
Protestants.  1  have  no  wish  to  be  understood  as  intimating  by  this 
that  any  movement  in  favor  of  Ireland  should  be  exclusively  Catholic. 
Far  fro'm  it.  I  think  that  any  national  movement  in  behalf  of  that 
country  should  embrace  the  whole  Irish  people,  Catholic  and  Protest 
ant,  and  every  friend  of  Ireland,  of  every  denomination,  who  loves 
freedom  and  hates  oppression.  The  deliverance  of  Ireland  means  the 
deliverance  of  the  whole  people.  It  means  equal  rights  and  equal 
privileges  for  all.  I  would  be  as  bitterly  opposed  to  Catholic  ascend 
ancy  as  I  am  to  Protestant  ascendancy.  I  hope  and  pray  that  the  day 
is  not  far  distant  when  all  these  unjust  ascendancies  shall  disappear 
from  the  face  of  the  earth  (applause).  But  we  all  know  that  the  great 
body  of  the  Irish  people  are  Catholic  to  the  core.  Catholicity  and 
nationality  are  almost  inseparable  in  Ireland;  both  have  been  con 
jointly  persecuted  by  the  same  government;  under  the  double-headed 
persecution  it  has  welded  them  together  and  made  them  almost  identical 
in  that  country  (enthusiastic  cheers).  This  it  is  which  constitutes 
the  great  strength  of  Ireland,  and  no  political  movement  antagonistic 
to  the  Catholic  can  ever  secure  that  strength  or  emancipate  the 
Irish  people.  The  man  who  thinks  otherwise  may  be  a  good  Irish 
patriot,  but  he  is  neither  a  good  Catholic  nor  a  wise  statesman  (cheers). 
If  I  had  any  influence  with  the  Fenian  body,  I  would  address  them 
to-day  in  some  such  language  as  this:  "Remodel  your  organization 
forthwith;  change  the  form  and  character  of  your  whole  society 
as  speedily  as  possible.  No  more  secrecy  or  conspiracy.  Make  your 
organization  worthy  of  the  Irish  cause  and  the  Irish  race.  In  your 
present  form  you  may  annoy  England,  but  you  can  be  of  no  sub 
stantial  benefit  to  Ireland.  In  spite  of  errors  and  mistakes,  you  have 
done  some  good  already.  You  have  taught  the  English  government 
that  the  Irish  spirit  is  still  untamed  and  unsubdued,  and  that  it  is 
bolder,  stronger  and  fiercer  than  ever  (tremendous  applause).  You 
have  taught  the  English  people  that  there  is  another  Ireland  growing 
up  on  this  side  of  the  Atlantic  that  hates-  English  ascendancy,  and 
despises  English  power  (cheers).  You  have  fired  the  Irish  heart 
with  visions  of  freedom  and  independence,  and  you  have  shown  the 
civilized  world  that  in  the  hour  of  extremity  the  worst  enemy  of 
England  will  find  his  best  ally  in  Ireland  (enthusiastic  applause).  It 
it  but  justice  to  admit,  however,  that  something  of  this  kind  was 
required  when  you  first  entered  upon  your  organization.  But  it  is 
needed  no  longer,  and  if  you  wish  to  serve  your  countrv  still,  to  do 
it  much  and  effectually,  you  must  change  your  system.  The  Catholic 
prelates  and  clergy  of  Ireland,  I  am  happy  to  see.  have  declared  for 
the  Repeal  of  the  Union  and  an  independent  parliament  for  Ireland. 
This  will  be  all  sufficient,  as  it  will  place  the  destiny  of  the  country 
in  the  hands  of  its  own  people.  The  present  time  is  peculiarly  pro 
pitious  for  such  a  movement.  It  will  command  the  support,  not  only 
of  the  Catholic  clergy  and  people  of  Ireland,  but  of  a  powerful  body 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

of  liberal  and  enlightened  Protestants.  It  will  find  an  influential 
party  in  England  in  its  tavor.  The  whole  Irish  race  and  the  friends 
of  Ireland  in  the  United  States  will  sustain  it — and  sustain  it  with  a 
zeal  and  energy  only  second  that  what  they  would  put  forth  in  the 
preservation  ot  their  own  country.  I  find  the  sympathy  and  moral 
support  of  the  whole  civilized  world  would  be  on  the  side  of  Ireland 
in  such  a  struggle,  and  at  this  advanced  age  of  the  world  such  a 
combination  of  civilixed  power  would  be  simply  irresistible.  But  even 
if  the  Irish  people  should  find  themselves  compelled,  in  the  long 
run,  to  resort  to  the  employment  of  physical  force,  even  in  that  case 
such  a  powerful  moral  organization  would  be  of  essential  advantage 
in  such  a  struggle.  As  the  Catholic  clergy  of  Ireland  have  already 
raised  the  banner  of  Repeal,  let  us  rally  around  that  consecrated  ban 
ner;  let  the  Irish  slogan  be  the  Repeal  of  the  Union  and  an  independent 
Irish  parliament  (tremendous  cheering),  and  I  am  convinced  that  in  a 
very  few  years  we  will  have  an  additional  anniversary  to  celebrate — 
the  anniversary  of  the  deliverance  of  the  Irish  Nation  (unbounded 
applause)!  In  our  meeting  here  to-day  we  must  not  forget  that  num 
bers  of  our  countrymen  are  suffering  in  dungeons  at  this  moment  for 
the  crime  of  loving  their  native  country;  we  must  never  forget  that 
some  of  the  truest  of  our  race  have  been  already  sacrificed  for  the 
same  crime,  and  they  have  already  died  the  death  of  felons,  and  that 
the  last  prayer  that  ascended  from  their  hearts,  the  last  cry  that  issued 
from  their  lips,  was  "God  bless  Ireland!"  (Enthusiastic  cheers.) 
Millions  of  Irish  hearts  in  this  country  will  re-echo  with  that  pleading 
cry,  and  the  shout  will  break  over  the  broad  Atlantic — "God  bless 
Ireland!"  (Tremendous  applause.)  Let  us  here  to-day,  on  this  anni 
versary  of  our  country,  send  our  heartfelt  sympathy  to  these  brave 
but  unfortunate  men;  let  us  send  some  substantial  token  of  relief  to 
the  destitute  families  of  those  who  are  the  victims  of  English  tyranny. 
What  stronger  appeal  can  be  made  to  Christian  hearts  than  an  appeal 
in  behalf  of  those  disconsolate  mothers  who  have  been  made  widows, 
«nd  those  hapless  children  who  have  been  made  orphans  by  the 
barbarous  policy  of  a  government  that  rewards  love  of  freedom  and 
country  with  cells  and  dungeons,  chains  and  halters. 

The  General  retired  amid  the  most  enthusiastic  and  vehement 
cheers  of  the  audience. — Cork  Examiner. 

A  LECTURE. 

On  last  Sunday  evening  the  gallant  Major-General  James  Shields 
lectured  in  Steinway  Hall,  in  presence  of  a  large  audience.  General 
Shields,  in  speaking,  held  a  heavy  cane.  He  said  that  he  could 
never  speak  unless  he  had  a  sword  or  a  cane  to  flourish.  He  spoke 
as  follows: 

This  is  St.  Patrick's  Day.  This  is  a  glorious  day  for  the  genial 
Irish  race.  What  the  Fourth  of  July  is  to  Americans  the  i;th  of 
March  is  to  Irishmen — that  is,  a  great  national  anniversary.  This 
Irish  anniversary  commemorates  the  birth  of  a  man  and  the  con 
version  of  a  nation  to  Christianity.  The  American  anniversary  com 
memorates  the  birth  of  a  nation  and  the  vindication  of  its  right  to 
freedom  and  independence.  The  Irish  need  this  kind  of  anni 
versary  also.  They  need  a  Fourth  of  July  as  well  as  a  i/th  of  March. 
The  year  that  brings  them  both  these  anniversaries  will  be  a  year  of 
jubilee  for  brave  old  Ireland.  Depend  upon  it,  that  year  of  jubilee  is 
not  so  far  off  as  some  people  think.  Prudence,  organization  and 
union  will  speedily  bring  it  about.  Prudence!  I  do  not  think  that 
word  exists  in  the  old  Irish  language.  I  am  very  certain  the  virtue 
itself  has  not  been  prominent  in  the  Irish  race.  The  Irish  are  a 


296  LIFE     OF    GEN.    SHIELDS. 

primitive  race  with  primitive  virtues;  they  are  fearless  and  inflexible, 
frank  and  hospitable,  quickly  roused  to  anger,  quick  to  forgive,  and 
true  as  steel  to  the  faith  of  St.  Patrick  and  to  the  land  of  their  birth 
and  the  country  of  their  adoption.  But  let  us  frankly  admit  that  what 
the  world  calls  prudence  has  not  been  one  of  the  cardinal  virtues  of 
the  race.  They  have  been  deficient  in  the  money-making  and  money- 
keeping  virtues.  These  have  not  been  the  virtues  of  the  Celt.  The 
Celtic  Irish,  therefore,  have  had  to  be  content  with  less  than  their 
share  of  wealth  and  luxury,  and  more  than  their  share  of  hard  work 
and  .hard  fighting  in  this  world  of  ours.  We  may  take  it  for  granted, 
therefore,  that  our  race  is  not  destined  to  control  the  money  markets 
of  the  world.  And  it  is  not  at  all  likely  to  produce  many  such  signal 
examples  of  moneyed  omnipotence  as  that  of  Rothschild  in  Europe 
and  Vanderbilt  in  America.  Still  the  Irish  have  other  qualities  and 
capabilities  quite  as  profitable  to  the  world  at  large,  though  perhaps 
not  so  profitable  to  themselves  as  a  people.  These  qualities  would 
make  them  successful  in  all  the  arts  of  peace  and  war  were  they 
only  to  act  in  perfect  harmony  and  union  among  themselves.  But 
union,  it  is  painful  to  say,  seems  to  have  been  a  thing  impossible 
among  the  Irish.  Faction  is  the  rule,  union  is  the  exception.  I  have 
set  out  to  speak  the  truth  to-night,  and  with  God's  help  I  mean  to  do 
it  to  the  best  of  my  ability.  Here  is  the  radical  defect  of  the  Irish 
race.  Divisions  among;  the  people  and  dissensions  among  the  leaders 
form  the  melancholy  burden  of  Irish  history.  Union  is  strength. 
This  great  truth  has  never  yet  been  thoroughly  comprehended  by  the 
Irish  race.  Eternal  shame  upon  those  men  who  devote  their  lives 
to  foment  dissensions  and  excite  hate  among  their  own  countrymen. 
If  they  do  this  villain's  work  in  the  name  of  country,  they  are  traitors 
under  the  mask  of  patriots.  If  they  do  it  under  the  plea  of  religion, 
they  are  doing  the  work  of  hell  under  the  name  of  heaven.  If  this 
spirit  of  faction  cannot  be  eradicated  from  the  race  the  condition  of 
Ireland  can  never  be  much  improved.  The  Irish  must  content  them 
selves  with  playing  an  inferior  part  in  the  great  drama  of  human 
history. 

But  I  am  very  sure  that  a  method  exists  by  which  this  fell  spirit 
can  be  entirely  eradicated.  The  Irish,  as  a  race,  are  the  most 
manageable  and  tractable  soldiers  on  the  face  of  the  earth.  As  sol 
diers  they  soon  learn  to  live  together,  work  together,  drill  together, 
and  fight  together  like  born  brothers.  The  reason  is,  they  are  born 
soldiers — they  are  essentially  a  military  race. 

You  may  take  the  Irishmen  who  work  on  your  streets,  place  them 
in  the  ranks  as  soldiers,  put  American  arms  into  their  hands,  and  then 
give  them  six  months'  effective  drill,  such  as  Irishmen  alone  can  stand, 
and,  old  as  I  am,  I  will  agree  to  fight  them,  when  thus  prepared,  against 
any  equal  number  of  men  of  any  race  or  nation  under  the  canopy  of 
heaven.  I  give  it  as  my  conviction  that  three  years  of  regular  military 
organization  and  rigid  military  discipline  would  do  more  to  elevate 
the  Irish  as  a  race  and  give  them  confidence  in  themselves  'than  three 
centuries  of  schools,  colleges  and  national  universities.  In  my  opinion, 
then,  a  general  military  organization  of  the  race  would  be  the  most 
effective  method  of  eradicating  forever  this  fatal  spirit  of  insubordina 
tion.  You  all  know  the  history  of  Ireland  by  heart,  you  feel  it  in  your 
very  hearts,  for  it  has  been  burned  into  your  very  souls.  The  fact  is, 
the  marks  of  the  brand,  though  disappearing  fast,  are  yet  visible  here 
and  there  in  the  errors  of  the  race.  Well,  with  that  history  in  my  hand, 
I  will  venture  to-night  to  indulge  in  a  little  historic  prophecy.  You  all 
know  the  Scotch  are  generally  reputed  canny  and  sagacious.  Well,  a 
Scotch  poet  has  wisely  sung  that 

'"Tis  the  sunset  of  life  gives  me  mystical  lore, 
And  coming  events  cast  their  shadows  before." 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  297 

Either  from  this  or  some  other  cause,  a  fancy  has  come  into  my 
brain  that  the  historic  life  of  St.  Patrick  is  a  perfect  type  of  the  national 
life  of  the  race  for  which  he  labored  on  this  earth.  Patrick  was  born 
of  a  noble  family.  The  Irish  race  has  sprung  from  one  of  the  noblest 
branches  of  the  human  family.  Patrick  was  seized  in  youth  by  ocean 
robbers,  carried  into  Ireland,  sold  into  slavery,  and  compelled  to  serve 
a  tyrant  master  seven  long  years.  The  Irish  race  became  the  prey  of 
men  who  were  little  better  than  professional  robbers.  These  men 
seized  upon  the  country,  and,  after  centuries  of  fierce  struggle,  re 
duced  all  that  remained  of  that  broken  race  into  dismal  and  discon 
tented  servitude.  The  duration  of  Irish  servitude  was  seven  centuries; 
the  duration  of  Patrick's  servitude  was  seven  years.  Does  not  this 
t}'pical  parallel  resemble  ancient  prophecy?  Having  been  robbed  and 
decimated  for  centuries,  an  attempt  was  made  to  legislate  all  the  noble 
ness  of  human  nature  out  of  the  remnant  that  was  left.  The  attempt 
was  atrocious.  The  Jtws  in  Babylon  were  better  treated  by  the  wor 
shipers  of  Baal  than  the  Irish  in  Ireland  by  the  followers  of  Christ. 
Patrick  finally  escaped  from  servitude,  crossed  the  sea  to  his  native 
Gaul,  and  in  that  friendly  land,  by  arduous  labor,  prepared  himself  for 
his  great  mission  in  Ireland. 

Millions  of  Irishmen  left  their  country,  crossed  the  ocean,  and 
among  a  friendly  people  on  this  Western  continent  have  ample  op 
portunity  to  make  every  preparation,  consistent  with  their  duty  as 
citizens,  to  assist  the  Irish  in  Ireland,  to  redeem,  regenerate  and  dis 
enthrall  their  native  land.  St.  Patrick  succeeded  in  converting  and 
civilizing  the  Irish  people  and  made  that  sea-girt  island,  thus  pre 
pared  by  his  efforts,  a  safe  asylum  for  Christian  civilization  during 
the  darkest  centuries  of  Christian  history.  What  have  the  Irish  people 
on  this  continent  yet  done  in  preparing  themselves  to  aid  in  the  re 
demption  of  their  country?  It  is  a  duty  of  natural  obligation,  resting 
upon  the  race  on  this  side  of  the  Atlantic,  to  prepare  to  assist  their 
brethren  at  home  in  their  efforts  to  ameliorate  the  condition  of  their 
country.  Were  I  dictator  of  the  Irish  race  for  only  three  years,  I 
would  form  all  the  men  of  Irish  blood  on  this  side  of  the  Atlantic  into 
a  complete  military  organization.  This  I  would  do  openly  and  in 
strict  conformity  to  law — not  for  the  purpose  of  revolution  or  violence, 
but  for  the  purpose  of  forming  a  great  race  into  a  compact  body  and  to 
teach  it  the  habit  of  disciplined  union.  Then,  with  half  a  million 
of  organized  men  at  my  back  and  with  the  sympathy  of  forty  millions 
of  freemen  to  support  me,  I  would  send  well-chosen  delegates  to  Ire 
land..  Some  of  those  who  ought  to  be  chosen,  I  could  almost  lay  my 
hand  upon  to-night;  and  by  those  delegates  acting  in  concert  with  the 
leaders  of  Ireland,  Catholic  and  Protestant,  lay  and  clerical,  a  program 
could  be  agreed  upon  which  would  not  fail  to  ameliorate  the  condition 
of  that  country.  That  program  ought  to  be  in  perfect  accord  with 
the  desires  and  aspirations  of  the  Irish  people  at  home.  For  us  who 
have  abandoned  that  country  to  attempt  to  dictate  any  particular  line 
of  policy  to  the  people  who  remain  there  would  be  "an  arrogant  as 
sumption,  which  would  prove  to  the  world  that  we  had  gained  but 
little  wisdom  by  our  association  with  a  free  people.  No,  we  must 
make  their  program  ours,  and  we  must  support  that  program  with 
all  the  moral  and  material  aid  which  this  transatlantic  Ireland  can 
possibly  furnish.  And  remember  that  this  Ireland  has  more  than  dou 
ble  the  numbers  and  quadruple  the  wealth  of  the  ancient  home  of 
the  race  itself.  This  program  thus  agreed  upon  at  the  joint  confer 
ence  should  be  presented  to  England  and  proclaimed  to  the  world, 
and  in  the  present  condition  of  Europe,  Asia  and  the  world  generally^ 
England  could  not  safely  afford  to  reject  it.  Some  such  plan  as  this, 
were  I  temporary  dictator,  I  would  commence  to  prepare  this  present 
year.  I  would  tolerate  no  invasions  of  Canada,  no  secret  societies,  no 


298  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

conspiracies,  no  tomfooleries  of  any  kind,  for,  howe\er  well  meant,  they 
are  only  frittering  away  the  hopes  and  wasting  the  energies  of  a  great, 
generous  and  too-confiding  people.  This  is  my  plan,  and  I  feel 
morally  certain  that  it  would  be  eminently  successful.  Let  us  not  for 
one  moment  anticipate  the  rejection  of  an  overture  so  fair  in  itself, 
and  prepared  with  such  an  accompaniment  of  moral  force.  But 
should  England  blindly  reject  it,  then  I  refer  you  to  the  historic 
parallel  I  am  running  to-night  between  the  life  of  Patrick  and  the  life 
of  the  race.  Milcho  was  Patrick's  master,  but  Patrick,  instead  of 
seeking  to  avenge  the  past,  wisely  and  nobly  sought  him  out,  and  did 
his  best  to  convert  and  save  him.  This  friendly  overture  Milcho 
rejected  with  scorn.  Now  mark  the  sequel;  there  is  a  terrible  warning 
in  it.  Milcho,  maddened  at  the  sight  of  his  former  slave  returning 
with  power  and  majesty,  set  fire  to  his  own  home,  and  perished,  a  rag 
ing  maniac,  in  the  flames.  The  heathens  had  their  Nemesis  This 
retributive  power  still  exists,  and  still  performs  her  terrible  office  in 
the  government  of  this  world.  After  the  lapse  of  centuries  in  the  case 
of  nations,  she  strikes  her  implacable  balance.  She  keeps  strict  ac 
counts  between  oppressors  and  oppressed,  and  then  strikes  her  balanc* 
and  when  that  fatal  balance  is  struck,  powerful  nations  are  swept  from 
the  earth,  like  Babylon,  in  a  night,  and  the  world  that  bowed  before 
them  knows  them  no  more.  Let  all  whom  this  mav  concern  take 
warning  in  time. 

THE  FOURTH  OF  JULY  IN  AMERICA. 
Speech  of  General  Shields. 

Our  space  will  not  admit  nor  does  our  inclination  lead  us  to  at 
tempt  to  give  the  numerous  addresses  delivered  in  St.  Joseph  and 
vicinity  on  the  Fourth.  It  is  next  to  impossible  for  speakers  to  invest 
the  subject  of  our  national  anniversary  with  sufficient  freshness  to 
interest  the  reader  after  the  enthusiasm  of  the  day  and  the  surroundings 
have  passed. 

But,  as  entirely  out  of  the  beaten  track  and  as  a  tribute  to  a  gentle 
sisterhood  whose  lives  in  our  very  midst  are  devoted  to  divine  charity, 
our  readers  will  thank  us  for  giving  them  the  following  brief  and  chaste 
address  of  the  distinguished  visitor  to  our  city,  whose  name  heads 
this  column,  delivered  on  the  evening  of  the  Fourth,  at  Brady's  Hall. 
General  James  Shields  is  known  to  everybody  in  this  country: 

Ladies  and  Gentlemen: — At  the  request  of  a  number  of  my  particu 
lar  friends  in  this  city,  I  have  come  here  this  evening  to  speak  a  few 
words  in  the  interest  of  those  excellent  ladies,  the  Sisters  of  Charity  of 
St.  Joseph.  It  would  be  almost  impossible  for  me  to  decline  a  request 
like  this,  in  any  case;  but  in  this  case  I  could  not  refuse  to  contribute 
my  feeble  efforts  to  ifurther  any  object  in  which  these  estimable  ladies 
take  an  interest.  We  all  know  that  every  matter  or  thing  of  this 
kind  in  which  the  devoted  Sisters  take  an  interest  has  for  its  sole 
and  exclusive  object  the  benefit  of  others.  In  all  they  undertake,  in 
all  they  accomplish,  in  all  their  enterprises,  these  ladies  have  always 
and  in  all  places  the  good  of  others  at  heart.  Even  when  they  appeal 
to  the  public  for  assistance  we  must  never  forget  that  the  assistance 
they  ask  for  is  not  for  themselves,  but  for  others,  and  generally  for  the 
poor  and  helpless  of  the  community  in  which  they  live.  In  giving 
assistance,  therefore,  to  them  we  only  supply  them  with  means  to  feed 
the  hungry,  to  clothe  the  naked,  to  minister  to  the  sick,  to  educate  the 
young,  to  succor  the  distressed,  to  comfort  the  afflicted,  to  support 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  299 

schools,  hospitals,  and  asylums,  and  to  perform  other  duties  of  Chris 
tian  charity  for  those  who  stand  most  in  need  of  it.  There  is  one 
fact  which  should  be  thoroughly  understood  by  all;  that  is,  that  the 
first  objects  of  the  care  and  solicitude  of  these  devoted  ladies  are  the 
poor,  the  despised  and  the  neglected  of  this  world.  Religion  has  con 
secrated  them  for  this  work.  And  there  is  not  an  old  soldier  in 
America,  with  the  true  heart  of  a  brave  soldier,  who  will  not  testify 
to  the  untiring  zeal  with  which  this  class  of  women  discharge  the 
duties  of  charity  and  mercy  to  which  they  have  dedicated  their  lives 
before  the  altar  of  the  living  God.  Sisters  of  Charity  and  Sisters  of 
Mercy  are  the  two  religious  orders  in  special  favor  with  the  army  of  the 
United  States.  All  those  soldiers  who  have  seen  service  in  the  field 
will  retain  through  life  a  vivid  recollection  of  the  trials  and  suffering 
incident  to  war — some  have  suffered  themselves,  the  others  have  wit 
nessed  the  sufferings  of  their  faithful  comrades.  These  men  will  all 
tell  you  of  whole  villages  of  military  hospitals,  and  of  thousands  of 
sick  and  wounded  soldiers,  writhing  and  suffering  night  and  day  within 
their  melancholy  precincts.  They^will  then  tell  you  how  a  large  num 
ber  of  quiet,  modest,  gentle  ladies,  singularly  and  plainly  attired,  moved 
silently,  day  and  night,  through  these  hospitals,  going  with  noiseless 
step  from  bed  to  bed,  and  attending,  like  ministering  angels,  to  all 
the  wants  of  those  poor  prostrate,  suffering  soldiers.  They  will  further 
tell  you  how  they  nursed  these  poor  sufferers  with  a  mother's  tender 
ness,  soothed  them  in  their  agony,  watched  over  them  while  they  slept, 
and  wept  for  them  and  prayed  for  them  when  they  thought  their  last 
hour  on  earth  was  close  at  hand.  This  disinterested  devotion  was 
something  which  these  poor  soldiers  found  it  hard  to  comprehend. 
They  had  never  seen  their  gentle  nurses  before — might  never  meet 
them  on  this  earth  again — never  even  learned  their  names,  nor  whence 
they  came,  nor  whither  they  went — but  they  will  bless  them  in  their 
hearts  as  long  as  they  live,  and  will  maintain  against  all  Christendom 
that,  if  the  spirit  of  Christian  charity  and  heavenly  pity  resides  any 
where  on  this  earth,  it  has  its  home  in  the  hearts  of  the  gentle  ladies 
who  nursed  them  in  those  military  hospitals.  Doubtless,  they  have 
learned  since  that  these  women  are  called  Sisters  of  Charity  and  Sisters 
of  Mercy,  and  that  they  are  devoted  members  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
Church;  and,  no  doubt,  they  wonder  greatly  at  this,  for  they  have 
heard  a  great  many  unpleasant*  things  said  from  time  to  time  in  Sab 
bath  sermons  at  home  about  the  gross  superstitions  of  that  kind  of 
people.  But  just  now  it  would  take  a  great  deal  of  eloquent  preaching 
to  make  them  think  ill  of  the  ladies  of  these  two  religious  orders, 
and  I  believe  in  my  soul  that  there  is  not  an  old  veteran  yet  alive  in 
this  country,  who  has  passed  through  the  ordeal  of  a  military 
hospital  and  been  waited  upon  there  by  these  devoted  Sisters  who 
would  not  rather  take  his  chance  of  salvation  in  their  company 
than  in  the  company  of  a  convocation  of  the  most  eloquent  divines  in 
America.  The  truth  is,  the  unanimous  verdict  of  our  veteran  soldiers 
is  that  to  minister  to  the  wasted  remnant  of  war,  and  the  mangled 
wrecks  of  battlefields,  Sisters  of  Charity  and  Sisters  of  Mercy  are  the 
best  substitutes  for  angels  that  this  earth  is  able  to  supply  in  its  actual 
condition  at  this  present  time.  As  I  happen  to  be  a  man,  I  claim  for 
my  sex  a  kind  of  rugged  superiority  in  all  the  stern  vocations  of  life 
which  require  great  physical'  strength  and  great  mental  power:  bur, 
at  the  same  time,  I  recognize  in  the  other  and  gentler  sex  a  decided 
superiority  in  the  higher  and  purer  departments  of  duty  which  con 
tribute  to  exalt  our  moral  and  spiritual  existence.  In  man's  most  ex 
alted  idea  of  heroic  duty  it  must  be  confessed  there  is  always  some 
thing  gross  and  earthly.  The  man  who  has  been  most  successful  in 
the  destruction  of  the  greatest  number  of  his  fellow-creatures  is  his 
ideal  hero  and  earthly  demigod.  Hence  the  Alexanders,  Caesars  and 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

Napoleons  of  this  world  are  the  idolized  heroes  of  masculine  history. 
Man's  natural  idols  ^have  always  something  destructive  in  their  char 
acter;  but  not  so  with  women,     iheir  idea  of  heroism  is  infinitely  more 
spiritual;  their  most  ardent  desire  is  to  save  their  fellow  creatures;  to 
comfort  and  console  them;  to  purify  them,  and  to  lift  them  up  out  ot 
the  sordid  path  of  gro'ss  pursuits  and  gross  enjoyments  into  a  higher 
region  and  a  purer  atmosphere,     it  is  exceedingly  tortunate  for  this 
country  that  at  the  present  time,  while  a  very  active  class  of  women 
are  battling  might  and  main  to  precipitate  tneir   whole  sex  into  the 
dusty  arena  of  politics,  there  to  engage  in  a  tierce  struggle  with  men 
lor  tne  vulgar  prizes  ot  public  hie,  we  nave  another  class  oi  women  like 
the  Sisters  of  Charity,  who  are  laboring  for  a  very  different  purpose 
and  who  present  a  very  different  example  to  their  sex;  an  example 
of   patience,   modesty,   self-denial   and    self-sacrifice,   and   of  the   daily 
practice   of  all   the  gentle  and   womanly   virtues.     Those  ladies   who 
devote  their  lives  to   the  practice   of  these  virtues  ought  to  be   held 
in  honor  and  respect  in  every  civilized  community.     And  I  am  proud 
to  know  and  to  proclaim  publicly  that  here,  in   St.  Joseph,  there  is 
but  one  feeling — that  of  honor  and  respect — for   our  modest,   gentle 
Sisters    of    Charity.     Any   country    in    which   the    people    ignore   and 
reject  the  gentle  virtues   of  chanty  and  mercy,  and  the  more  heroic 
virtues  of  self-denial  and  self-sacrifice,  is  a  country  already   doomed. 
Its  soul  is  dead.     Its  downfall  inevitable.     France,  for  the  last  quarter 
of  a  century,   neglected  as  a  nation  to  either  honor  or  respect  these 
virtues.     It   set   up   the   first   Mapoleon    as   a   national    idol,   took   his 
military  character  as  a  national  model,  made  mere  military  success  the 
chief  object  of  the  people's  worship;  a  worship  admirably  calculated 
to  reduce  a  nation  of  heroes  to  a  nation  of  brigands.     In  fact,  France's 
great  idol  himself  was  little  more  than  a  transcendent  Corsican  brig 
and  at  best.     Well,  the  result  of  all  this  is  now  before  us.     There  is 
Sedan  and   Metz,  and  burned,  blighted,   blood-stained  Paris,  and  last 
and    foulest    result    of   all — Communism — the    abomination    of   desola 
tion  of  the  nineteenth  century — an  open  war  of  demonized  men  upon 
all  the  Christian  virtues,  and  upon  all  men  and  women  who  practice 
them.     There   is   a   remarkable    harmony   between    the   general   char 
acter     of     a     people     and     the     ideal     character     of     their     historic 
idol,      which      they      try      to      mold      into      their      own      likeness. 
The    Greeks,    in    their    decadence,    ignored    the    grand    examples    of 
their     early     history — the     noblest     examples     of     self-denial,     self- 
sacrifice  and  devotion  to  country  in  human  history — and  made  Alex 
ander  the  Great  their  historic  idol  and  national  model,  deifying  mili 
tary  prowess  and  the  abstract  spirit  of   conquest.     History  gives   us 
the   result — the   subjugation   of   Greece   and   the    extinction   of   Greek 
civilization.     The  Romans,  in  their  decline,  took  Julius  Caesar  for  their 
national   idol,  and  closing  their  eyes  to  the  many  great   qualities  of 
that  remarkable  man — to  his  clemency,  generosity  and  magnanimity — 
they  regarded  only  his  unscrupulous  ambition  and  unparalleled  mili 
tary  success.     The  end  was  ruin  irremediable.     Their  monstrous  vices, 
their  contempt  of  all  heathen,  and  even  human,  virtues,  made  these 
conquerors  of  the  world  the  ignominious  prey  of  the  fierce  barbarians 
of  the   northern    forests.     The    English    people    have   been    more    for 
tunate  in  their  choice  of  a  national  idol.     They  recognize  Alfred  the 
Great  as  their  grandest  and  noblest  historic  character.  This  extraor 
dinary    man   united    in   himself    mostly    all    the    great     qualities     that 
adorn    human    nature.      This    example    has    not    been    lost    upon    the 
English  people.    That  patience,  perseverance  and  fortitude — that  de 
votion    to    country   and    reverence    for    law    and    limited    government 
which  distinguished   Alfred   the    Great — are  the  prevailing   character 
istics  of  the  English  people  at  the  present  day.     But  of  all  the  coun 
tries   in   history,    our   own   America    is    the   most   transcendently    for- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  301 

tunate  in  this  respect.  The  historic  idol  of  the  people  of  the  United 
States — their  first  and  greatest  national  model — is  tne  ever-glorious 
and  immortal  Washington.  George  Washington  is  indisputably  and 
beyond  all  question  the  grandest  and  noblest  public  character  in  pro 
fane  history.  He  combines  in  his  character  the  highest  type  of  the 
hero,  statesman,  patriot  and  Christian.  No  man  is  able  to  analyze 
Washington's  character.  His  great  qualities  are  so  well  balanced, 
combined  and  blended  together  that  no  man  can  separate  them  or 
assign  a  predominance  to  any  one  great  quality  over  all  others.  His 
virtues  are  in  such  perfect  harmony  that  no  man  is  able  to  criticise 
his  life.  His  character  is  rounded  off  into  a  complete  whole.  There 
is  not  one  great  virtue  that  adorns  human  nature  that  you  cannot 
predicate  of  George  Washington.  Patience,  prudence,  fortitude,  clem 
ency,  wisdom,  justice,  courage  and  perseverance  are  all  there,  and 
add  to  these  his  love  of  country  and  reverence  for  his  Creator,  and 
you  have  in  George  Washington  the  grandest  and  most  beautiful 
public  character  in  human  history.  So  long  as  the  people  of  this 
country  honor  and  respect  his  character,  and  imitate  his  virtues, 
they  have  nothing  to  fear  for  the  fate  of  their  country.  And  a  people 
who  honor  and  respect  the  virtues  of  George  Washington  will  never 
be  indifferent  to  the  virtue  of  the  most  humble,  even  to  the  modest 
virtues  of  the  gentle  Sisters  of  Charity.— St.  Joseph's  (Missouri)  Ga 
zette. 


CHAPTER     XXII. 


Lecture  in  Brooklyn  in  Behalf  of  Yellow  Fever  Sufferers— His 
Graphic  Descriptions  of  Jackson,  Webster,  Clay  and  Calhoun— 
Eloquent  Speeches  by  Other  Prominent  Citizens. 


To  show  General  Shields'  versatility— his  many-sidedness— I  pub 
lish  several  of  his  addresses.  I  wish  to  do  with  him  as  Herndon 
did  with  Lincoln— reveal  him  as  he  really  was— which  is  biography; 
anything  different  is  romance  or  fiction.  Therefore,  I  lay  before  the 
reader  one  of  his  campaign  speeches,  made  the  year  I  was  first 
elected  a  member  of  the  Legislature  of  Illinois.  His  patriotism 
shines  forth  in  his  references  to  Home  Rule,  his  St.  Patrick  Day 
addresses,  as  well  as  his  Fourth  of  July  orations,  while  his  religious 
fervor  and  benevolence  are  evident  in  his  lectures  on  behalf  of  hos 
pitals  and  other  charities,  and  in  his  great  speech  in  behalf  of  the 
yellow  fever  sufferers. 

The  addresses  were  difficult  to  find,  and  unless  reproduced  here 
would  be  lost  to  posterity.  An  edition  of  his  speeches  and  an 
account  of  the  laws  he  originated  and  assisted  in  passing  can  be 
published  for  half  the  cost  of  this  work,  and  will  be,  if  a  well- 
grounded  demand  therefor  is  found  to  exist  in  the  future,  coupled 
with  many  reminiscences  of  the  great  man  which  readers  may  furnish 
me. 

While  much  of  this  publication  is  a  compilation  and  the  written 
testimony  of  prominent  friends  of  General  Shields,  its  relevancy 


302 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


and  importance  will  be  appreciated  by  those  who  desire  to  see  all 
the  proof  adduced  that  can  be  to  sustain  my  claims  on  behalf  of  the 
subject  of  this  book.  I  expect  my  position  and  assertions  to  be 
attacked,  and,  therefore,  have  fortified  in  advance.  United  States 
Senators,  even  from  Illinois,  and  those  whom  they  have  provided 
fat  offices  for,  and  for  their  descendants,  will  be  apt  to  set  up  the 
work  of  their  benefactors  in  "piping  tunes  of  peace"  against  General 


GEN.  SHIELDS'  LAST  PICTURE. 

Shields'  unsurpassed  bravery.  As  a  distributer  of  spoils  I  am  pleased 
to  state  he  never  distinguished  himself,  therefore  his  camp  followers 
are  few  and  far  between. 

EDITORIAL  IRISH  WORLD,  OCTOBER  5,   1878. 

A  brief  announcement  that  Maj.-Gen.  James  Shields 
would  address  a  meeting  in  aid  of  the  yellow  fever  suffer 
ers  brought  a  large  concourse  of  people  to  the  Academy 
of  Music,  Brooklyn,  last  Thursday  evening.  As  early  as 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  303 

seven  o'clock  the  audience  commenced  to  assemble  in 
front  of  the  Academy,  which  was  not  yet  opened,  and 
half  an  hour  later,  when  the  doors  were  thrown  open, 
the  assemblage  had  extended  to  the  other  side  of  the 
street. 

General  Shields,  who  was  the  guest  of  Captain  C.  J. 
Murphy,  of  446  Henry  Street,  according  to  arrange 
ment,  was  escorted  to  the  Academy  by  Rankin  Post, 
G.  A.  R.,  who  turned  out  nearly  seventy  strong,  under 
the  command  of  Captain  George  W.  Squires.  The  Fort 
Hamilton  Artillery  Band  volunteered  to  furnish  the  music. 
As  the  General  made  his  appearance  on  the  stage,  shortly 
after  eight  o'clock,  three  cheers  were  proposed  and  heart 
ily  given  for  the  "hero  of  two  wars." 

The  Academy,  by  this  time,  was  filled  from  "pit  to 
dome"  by  a  brilliant  audience,  while  on  the  platform 
were  most  of  the  committee  of  arrangements,  which  was 
composed  of  the  following  well-known  citizens :  Rev. 
W.  W.  Bowdish,  pastor  First  Place  M.  E.  Church ;  Rev.  Dr. 
Duryea,  pastor  Classon  Avenue  Presbyterian  Church ;  Rev. 
Dr.  Hall,  pastor  Holy  Trinity  Church ;  Rev.  Charles  Cuth- 
bert  Hall,  pastor  First  Presbyterian  Church;  Rev.  Dr. 
Hamma,  pastor  English  Lutheran  Church;  Rev.  Joseph 
Fransioli,  pastor  St.  Peter's  Church ;  Rev.  Father  Malone, 
pastor  SS.  Peter  and  Paul  Church;  Rev.  J.  B.  Murray, 
pastor  Metropolitan  Mission ;  Rev.  Dr.  Schenck,  pastor 
St.  Ann's  on  the  Heights ;  Rev.  Dr.  Storrs,  pastor  Church 
of  the  Pilgrims ;  Rev.  Jesse  B.  Thomas,  pastor  First  Bap 
tist  Church;  Hon.  Judge  Van  Cott,  Hon.  Judge  McCue, 
Hon.  Henry  C.  Murphy,  Captain  C.  J.  Murphy,  Flon. 
William  E.  Robinson,  General  Roger  A.  Pryor;  also 
Mayor  Howell,  Rev.  T.  S.  Slicer,  Rev.  S.  Hyatt  Smith, 
Rev.  Dr.  Thwing,  Colonel  Pultz,  Captain  Jas.  Tanner, 
Colonel  Thomas  S.  Henderson,  General  Gibson,  U.  S.  A., 
Hon.  Geo.  L.  Fox,  Rev.  D.  S.  Ferris,  Colonel  Polton, 
U.  S.  A.,  Rev.  Joseph  Wild,  and  many  others. 

Patrick  Ford,  editor  Irish  World,  was  chairman  of 
the  committee  of  arrangements;  Augustine  Ford,  secre 
tary;  and  Hon.  James  Howell,  mayor,  treasurer. 


304  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

Captain  Murphy  rendered  very  efficient  service  in 
making  the  demonstration  a  success. 

OPENING    EXERCISES. 

''Corporal"  Tanner  called  the  assemblage  to  order, 
and  in  doing  so,  on  behalf  of  the  committee,  tendered 
heartfelt  thanks  to  the  large  audience  for  the  generous 
support  given  by  their  presence.  In  reference  to  the  dis 
tinguished  gentleman  who  was  to  speak  here  to-night, 
Major-General  James  Shields,  he  was  not  as  familiar  with 
Brooklyn  as  Brooklyn  was  with  him.  He  was  com 
ing  before  an  audience  that  reflected,  regarding  the 
stricken  South,  that  we  who  conquered  should  be  the 
first  to  succor  them  in  the  hour  of  their  affliction.  He 
then  introduced  Hon.  W.  E.  Robinson,  who,  on  coming 
forward,  said: 

Ladies  and  Gentlemen : — Unexpectedly  I  have  been 
called  upon  to  perform  the  task  of  introducing  the  speak 
ers  this  evening.  Happily,  it  is  not  expected,  neither 
would  it  be  proper  for  me,  to  make  any  lengthy  remarks 
before  introducing  to  you  the  principal  object  of  the  even 
ing.  You  all  know  we  have  in  our  midst  here  to-night 
Major-General  James  Shields.  (Loud  applause.)  I  can 
not  now  tell  you  his  history.  When  this  country  wanted 
heroes  he  was  present,  and  on  the  battlefield  he  has  per 
formed  heroic  acts  which  have  associated  his  name  with 
the  great,  being  such  as  to  elicit  the  encomiums  of  Gen 
eral  Winfield  Scott. 

We  are  assembled  to-night  in  a  holy  cause.  We  have 
met  together  in  the  holy  cause  of  charity.  Politics  are 
unknown  among  us.  Sect  is  ignored.  Upon  this  stage 
are  men  of  different  denominations  and  calling — the  Cath 
olic  and  Presbyterian,  the  Episcopalian  and  the  Baptist. 
Our  brethren  of  the  South,  whom  we  love  as  the  sons  of 
our  mother,  are  suffering  and  dying.  The  cry  which  as 
cends  from  our  Southern  brethren  has  spread  over  the 
land,  and  it  has  touched  the  hearts  of  the  nation.  Long 
since  General  Shields  suggested,  in  a  letter  to  one  of  the 
gentlemen  of  the  committee,  that  he  would  like  to  come 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  305 

here  and  perform  the  services  which  he  is  here  to-night  to 
perform  toward  his  brethren  of  the  South,  where  brave 
men,  the  Catholic  and  Protestant  clergymen,  are  bend 
ing  over  the  sick  and  closing  the  eyes  of  the  dying. 
Brave  men  and  braver  women  who  are  facing  distress 
and  danger  greater  than  that  encountered  on  the  field  of 
battle — braver  women,  whether  clothed  in  the  common 
garb  or  the  garb  of  the  pure  Sister  of  Chanty,  that  have 
gone  and  are  going  to  these  scenes  of  death.  (Loud 
applause.)  Just  as  Mr.  Robinson  finished  speaking  the 
band  struck  up  "Hail  to  the  Chief/'  A  slight  flutter 
passed  through  the  audience,  and  every  eye  was  directed 
toward  the  stage  by  the  pervading  feeling  of  eagerness 
to  see  the  distinguished  man — the  main  attraction  of  the 
occasion.  General  Shields,  with  the  aid  of  his  cane,  raised 
himself  from  his  seat  and,  leaning  upon  Mr.  Robinson's 
arm,  slowly  advanced  to  the  front  of  the  stage.  His  in 
firmity  was  at  once  apparent,  but  as  the  overwhelming 
outburst  of  applause  greeted  him,  his  keen,  gray  eye 
glistened  with  gladness  as  he  glanced  rapidly  over  the 
audience,  and  he  seemed  to  have  gained  strength  and  re 
newed  vigor. 

GENERAL    SHIELDS'    SPEECH. 

The  storm  of  applause  having  at  length  subsided,  the 
General  commenced : 

Ladies  and  Gentlemen : — At  the  outset  I  beg  to  ask 
an  indulgence  which  I  feel  you  will  grant  me;  I  therefore 
ask  that  you  will  hear  me  patiently,  which  I  know  you 
will ;  that  you  will  hear  me  indulgently  as  an  invalid ;  that 
you  will  let  me  speak  slowly  and  quietly  and  without 
any  strain  or  effort  to-night.  I  trust  you  will  grant  me 
this  indulgence;  and  I  do  so  because  I  know  this  mag 
nificent  audience  never  came  here  to  hear  a  poor  talk 
from  me  alone.  No,  no,  my  fellow-citizens  of  this  great 
city  of  New  York  and  Brooklyn;  you  have  come  here 
for  a  grander,  a  nobler,  a  more  sublime  and  holy  pur 
pose.  I  wanted  to  come  here  to  tell  you,  and  through 
you  to  tell  the  citizens  of  this  imperial  city,  that  New 
York  has  won  the  admiration  of  the  whole  Western  world, 
and  I  am  inclined  to  think  the  South  also ;  for  by  your 


306  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

noble  efforts  in  the  paths  of  Christian  charity  you  have 
achieved  greater  glory  than  you  ever  did  by  your  com 
mercial  magnificence.  (Loud  applause.) 

You,  who  are  supposed  to  be  given  to  gain,  to  prog 
ress,  to  business,  all  at  once  have  set  the  glorious  example 
to  this  American  people,  that  on  this  occasion  of  terrible 
distress,  when  it  would  seem  that  the  angel  of  pestilence 
has  visited  one  of  the  finest  portions  of  our  country, 
that  you  of  New  York  and  Brooklyn,  and  the  whole 
North  and  the  West,  have  stepped  forward  and  given  an 
exhibition  of  charity  such  as  never  was  given  with  human 
alacrity  before;  and  you  have  given  it  for  a  noble  cause. 

I  remember — for  I  have  Irish  blood  in  my  veins  (loud 
applause) — that  when  poor  old  Ireland  was  the  stricken 
of  nations,  of  all  the  peoples  of  this  broad  earth  that 
stepped  forward  and  carried  abundance  to  poor  old  Ire 
land  was  this  same  American  people.  The  people  that 
showed  the  greatest  ardor  and  enthusiasm  and  feeling  for 
poor  Ireland  then  were  those  from  regions  that  have  been 
stricken  by  pestilence  recently;  for  a  more  hospitable 
people  God  never  made  than  the  people  that  are  now 
stricken.  They  have  their  faults — so  have  the  Irish — but, 
after  all,  they  have  a  great  many  virtues  to  overbalance 
them. 

You  have  done  a  noble  thing,  a  grandly  charitable 
thing,  and  you  have  proved  it  to  me  even  an  old  man.  In 
times  when  there  seems  to  be  some  discouragements  all 
over  the  land  you  have  shown  the  truth  of  what  Dean 
Stanley  announced  in  Boston,  that  'There  is  a  divine  ele 
ment  in  human  nature  that  will  always  assert  itself  in  a 
scene  of  great  distress  and  great  calamity."  Yes,  that 
divine  element  has  asserted  itself  in  these  United 
States  of  America  in  a  way  that  is  not  only  honorable  to 
America,  but  to  human  nature  all  over  the  world.  (Loud 
applause.) 

At  this  point  the  General  had  become  somewhat  faint 
and  asked  for  time  to  breathe,  but  in  less  than  two  minutes 
again  resumed : 

I  am  never  going  to  say  much  again  about  heroism  on 
the  battlefield.  I  feel  humble  when  I  think  how  far  a  feeble 
woman  can  transcend  a  soldier  in  real,  genuine  service. 
I  have  witnessed,  myself,  ladies  embarking  on  board  the 
steamer,  going  to  the  scenes  of  desolation  to  nurse  the 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

sick  and  dying.  Some  of  them  left  their  homes  and  fami 
lies;  some  we  could  not  tell  whether  they  had  homes  or 
families ;  they  did  not  want  to  be  known ;  they  had  no 
names  that  society  knew  them  by.  There  they  went 
slowly  but  fearlessly  on  board  the  steamers  bound  for  the 
stricken  cities,  to  go  down  to  the  pestilential  abodes,  and 
there  nurse  the  poor,  sick,  dying  patients,  and  prepare  them 
for  another  world.  They  did  it  calmly,  without  any  osten 
tation,  only  next  day  to  be  stricken  down  themselves, 
unprepared  to  follow  those  patients,  perhaps  to  the 
same  graves,  and  to  meet  the  same  Maker — all  calmly, 
quietly,  heroically,  such  as  never  took  place  on  a  battle 
field  this  side  of  heaven.  I  have  seen  these  poor,  feeble, 
gentle  women,  that  I  thought  a  cannon  would  frighten 
to  death,  perform  acts  of  heroism  such  as  no  man  has  ever 
yet  performed.  (Loud  and  long  continued  applause.) 

And,  my  friends,  you  are  doing  good.  You  are 
doing  it  for  your  own  people ;  for  people  who  speak  your 
o\vn  language ;  for  people  born  on  your  own  soil ;  for 
people  who  breathe  the  same  air,  and  people  who  have  the 
same  government — and  they  are  bound  to  have  it.  (Loud 
applause.)  And  these  people  will  know  that  if  we  were 
fighting  against  them,  we  were  fighting  as  much  for  their 
benefit  as  for  our  own.  We  were  not  fighting  to  save 
this  country  for  ourselves ;  we  were  fighting  to  save  the 
country  for  them  also,  and  they  will  rejoice  as  much  here 
after  for  that  as  we  are  doing.  And  now  I  hope  in  God 
that  hereafter  no  man  will  be  found  in  the  South  to  at 
tempt  to  fire  the  Southern  heart  against  the  North,  and 
that  no  man  will  be  found  in  the  North  mean  enough  to 
inflame  the  Northern  men  against  the  South.  (Loud  ap 
plause.) 

JACKSON,  WEBSTER,  CLAY,  CALHOUN. 
But  this  is  not  the  topic  I  am  to  speak  on  to-night. 
It  is  another  topic,  and  I  wish  I  was  in  a  condition  to  make 
my  speech  worthy  of  the  subject.  I  promised  to  give 
sketches  of  four  eminent  men  ;  four  of  the  most  remarkable 
Americans  that  ever  lived — of  Andrew  Jackson  (applause), 
Daniel  Webster  (applause),  Henry  Clay  and  John  C.  Cal- 
houn.  (Loud  and  long  continued  applause.)  I  will  not 
give  you  history;  you  can  read  history  for  yourselves. 
What  I  want  to  do  to-night,  if  you  will  let  me  in  this  poor 
invalid  way,  is  to  bring  these  men,  as  it  \vere,  before  you ; 
to  present  them  to  you  here  in  this  audience,  as  they  were 


308  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

present  in  their  day  to  their  associates,  and  as  they  are 
present  to  me  at  this  moment  in  mind  and  in  memory; 
and  to  do  that  I  want  to  give  you  a  faithful  description 
of  their  general  appearance,  their  mode  of  speaking  and 
acting,  the  peculiar  characteristics  which  distinguished 
them  both  in  mind  and  body — distinguished  them  in  their 
day  among  their  contemporaries. 

When  I  was  young  Jackson,  Webster,  Clay,  Calhoun, 
were  household  words  in  every  home  in  these  United 
States.  They  are  loved  and  honored  in  America  still; 
they  still  live  in  the  American  heart,  and  they  will  shine 
forever  in  the  brightest  pages  of  American  history.  (Loud 
applause.)  It  is  a  luminous  history,  full  of  great  names 
and  great  deeds.  It  is  a  treasury  of  grand  examples  to 
the  future  generations  of  America.  Some  of  the  great 
est  examples  in  human  history  are  to  be  found  in  your 
American  history.  George  Washington  (loud  applause) — 
one  of  the  greatest  figures  in  human  history,  as  accepted 
by  the  civilized  world.  Washington  is  the  highest  type 
which  the  human  race  has  yet  produced  of  the  citizen 
soldier,  the  Christian  soldier,  the  incorruptible  patriot 
and  the  enlightened  statesman.  (Tremendous  applause.) 
And  then  the  others — Jefferson,  Henry,  Franklin,  Ad 
amses  (John  and  Samuel),  John  Hancock,  Alex.  Ham 
ilton,  who,  in  point  of  ability,  was  second  only  to  Wash 
ington  himself.  These  are  the  great  examples  in  your 
Revolutionary  history.  But  the  page  that  succeeded  the 
Revolution  was  also  a  wonderful  one.  A  wonderful  body 
of  men,  produced,  as  it  \vere,  out  of  that  fiery  struggle. 
They  had  all  the  characteristics  of  their  predeces 
sors — faithful  to  themselves,  faithful  to  their  country, 
never  feared  failure  for  themselves  or  their  country,  and 
they  didn't  fail.  Never  was  such  a  progress  wit 
nessed  as  the  progress  of  the  American  republic 
during  that  generation  which  has  passed  away  and  never 
will  again,  for  the  same  conditions  will  never  exist  again. 
It  was  a  phenomenal  progress  in  the  arts  and  sciences ; 
progress  in  every  human  enterprise,  in  wealth,  in  power, 
in  population,  in  territory — such  astounding  progress  in 
one  generation  by  one  people  was  never  witnessed  upon 
this  planet  before,  and  never  will  be  witnessed  on  this 
planet  again ;  the  same  conditions  will  never  exist  again. 
And  of  all  those  men  of  that  great  generation  the  most 
remarkable  one  of  the  four  men  whose  names  I  have  men 
tioned  to-night  was  Andrew  Jackson. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  3D9 

I  think  I  see  him  in  my  mind  now ;  tall,  spare,  sinewy, 
athletic.  Not  an  ounce  of  surplus  flesh  was  ever  seen  on 
Andrew  Jackson's  body,  but  bones,  sinew,  muscle — an 
iron  frame  and  iron  constitution.  Look  at  the  man;  you 
can  see  it  in  his  very  head,  cut  so  you  think  he  was  made 
for  a  leader  of  men.  It  was  not  a  large  head,  it  was  not 
quite  gigantic,  but  it  was  a  head  for  thought  and  action 
both.  So  was  the  brow  made  for  active  thought  and 
inflexible  purpose.  Then  the  countenance  the  same — 
able,  resolute,  commanding.  But  the  eye !  I  have  seen 
many  a  bright  eye  and  remarkable  eye  in  my  day — and 
there  was  a  time  when,  like  some  of  these  young  fellows, 
I  liked  to  look  at  pretty  eyes  (great  applause  and 
laughter) — but  of  all  the  eyes  1  have  ever  seen  in  a  human 
countenance,  Andrew  Jackson's  eye  transcended  them  all. 
The  most  magnificent  dark  gray  eye  I  ever  looked  upon.  (A 
voice  in  the  audience — "Yes,  by  the  eternal !")  (Cheers.) 

The  General  continued : 

You  could  read  the  battle  of  New  Orleans  in  that 
eye.  Yet  it  was  a  tender  eye;  it  was  as  tender  in  private 
life  as  any  eye  I  ever  saw.  In  public  duty  it  was  inflex 
ible.  There  was  a  time  when  it  was  as  calm  and  gentle 
as  the  eye  of  one  of  these  young  ladies  (meaning  the 
young  ladies  present,  who  evidently  appreciated  the  com 
pliment,  as  they  became  all  smiles),  and  at  other  times 
that  eye  did  not  fear  anything  in  the  world.  (Applause 
and  laughter.)  There  was  one  thing  which  it  hated,  it 
hated  fraud — and  I  wish  some  of  our  leading  men 
had  the  same  propensity  now.  (Prolonged  applause.) 
And  it  hated  falsehood,  and  it  hated  knavery,  and  it 
hated  cowardice.  Wouldn't  you  like  to  have  Jack 
son  to  rule  the  country  again?  (Tremendous  applause.) 
1  don't  believe  Andrew  Jackson  ever  saw  a  human  being- 
maltreated  that  he  did  not  take  its  effect  on  his  own 
hands;  he  never  saw  a  human  creature  down  that  he 
did  not  try  to  protect ;  he  never  saw  anyone  wronged  that 
he  did  not  oppose  the  wrongdoer.  What  wonder,  then, 
that  he  did  not  have  much  peace  on  his  hands?  He  was 
fighting  all  the  time;  he  was  victorious  always.  That 
accounts  why  he  was  in  so  many  struggles,  but  he  always 
fought  for  some  unfortunate  person — sometimes  a  woman, 
sometimes  a  man — and  he  would  fight  against  the  whole 
world  for  a  poor  creature  that  he  believed  to  be  wronged. 
That  is  the  kind  of  a  man  Jackson  was.  He  was  a  popu- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

lar  man  with  a  certain  class  of  society.  Jackson  was 
never  popular  with  what  you  call  the  higher  classes  in 
America — a  very  strange  thing.  This  born  hero — this 
modern  type — never  was  popular  with  what  were  called  the 
literary  men,  and  the  fashionable  classes,  and  the  wealthy 
classes.  They  considered  him  illiterate.  No;  he  wrote 
one  of  the  best  state  papers  that  has  emanated  from  the 
State  House  since  Washington's  day.  He  was  educated 
as  Washington  was  educated;  he  was  educated  as  Chris 
topher  Columbus  was  educated ;  he  was  educated  as  Crom 
well  was  educated.  (Applause.)  I  remember  well  when 
he  was  candidate  for  the  presidency.  If  you  went  into 
a  fashionable  hotel  and  took  a  seat  at  a  fashionable  table, 
nine- tenths  of  those  around  you,  you  would  find,  were 
opposed  to  Andrew  Jackson.  But  go  into  a  common  or 
ordinary  hotel,  where  ordinary  people  were  assembled, 
and  you  could  make  a  bet  that  they  were  all  for  Jackson. 
But  they  carry — the  common  people  carry — the  day,  and 
always  will.  (Applause.) 

I  have  a  word  to  say  about  another.  I  will  get 
through  as  quick  as  I  can,  as  I  want  to  hear  the  others 
talk.  This  is  about  Daniel  Webster.  "Black  Dan,"  as 
we  used  to  call  him.  (Loud  applause.)  His  head  was 
large  and  powerful.  Webster  was  an  immense  man.  He 
was  immense  physically  and  intellectually.  The  whole 
man  seemed  to  have  been  cast  in  a  colossal  mold.  I  will 
tell  you  what  Webster's  distinguishing  characteristic  was — 
power.  Not  energy,  not  activity,  not  industry,  but — 
power,  power;  absolute  power;  power  physical,  power  in 
tellectual  ;  power  that  could  perform  tragedies  without 
apparent  effort.  You  saw  it  in  his  walk,  in  his  deport 
ment  :  you  heard  it  in  his  conversation  and  in  his  eloquence. 
The  very  sight  of  the  man  was  power.  Literal  and  intel 
lectual  prominence  were  the  characteristics  of  the  man. 
I  never  saw  such  a  head  upon  a  human  body  for  size, 
weight,  magnitude,  capacity.  I  never  saw  and  never 
heard  of  such  a  head.  It  was  perfectly  colossal.  And 
then  the  brow.  I  have  no  name  for  it.  Majesty — that 
won't  do.  It  was  an  Olympian  brow;  that  is  the  name 
for  it.  A  brow  the  beautful  Greek  painting  was  imagined 
for  its  Olympus.  That  was  Webster's  brow.  This  is 
what  the  British  minister  at  Washington,  Lord  Bulwer, 
told  me  in  that  city.  He  happened  to  be  in  Spain  when 
Daniel  Webster  was  in  London,  and  on  returning  he  said 
he  heard  everyone  talking  about  this  great  American — 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  311 

this  wonderful  New  England  man.  "I  thought,"  he  said, 
"I  would  ask  Sir  Robert  Peel  what  manner  of  man  that 
great  American  was,  and  this  was  the  answer:  1  tell 
you  what  I  think  about  the  manner  of  man  he  is.  He 
has  more  intellectual  greatness  in  his  very  looks  than 
there  is  in  the  whole  life  of  any  Englishman  now  living/  ' 
That  was  the  opinion  of  the  leader  of  Her  Majesty's 
government.  And  I  believe  in  my  soul  that  he  said  what 
was  true.  In  intellectual  greatness  I  don't  believe  a  man 
lived  on  the  whole  globe  that  equaled  Daniel  Webster. 
You  ought  to  hear  him  speak.  Now,  for  the  benefit  of 
those  young  men  here,  I  will  try  and  describe  it.  Every 
educated  man  ought  to  be  acquainted  with  Daniel  Web 
ster.  He  is  the  best  model  of  senatorial  eloquence  in 
the  English  language.  But  you  must  hear  him  spoken 
in  order  to  appreciate  him;  and  that  is  what  I  would  like 
to  describe.  It  was  not  exactly  oratory — what  we  West 
ern  men  call  oratory.  I  will  tell  you  what  it  was;  simply 
honest,  powerful,  overwhelming  speech.  It  was  over 
whelming  speech,  without  the  slightest  apparent  effort. 
]t  was  speaking  such  as  I  have  never  heard  another  man 
speak;  and  one  would  think  the  man  had  twice  as  much 
behind  him  as  he  was  giving  the  public.  It  was  a  natural 
outflow.  His  favorite  costume  when  he  made  his  great 
speeches  was  a  uniform  of  the  American  Revolution — a 
blue  coat  and  buff  vest.  When  he  entered  the  Senate 
in  that  dress  we  all  knew  we  had  an  intellectual  treat 
before  us.  He  would  rise  in  his  seat  calmly  and  slowly. 
He  would  enter  upon  his  discussion  just  as  a  gentleman 
would  in  earnest  conversation,  and  that  would  go  on 
swelling,  and  increasing,  and  growing,  and  enlarging,  and 
expanding  in  the  finest  manner  until  the  Senate  chamber 
would  vibrate  to  his  voice  like  tones  of  muttering  thunder. 
It  reached  everywhere,  filled  everywhere,  and  the  effect 
upon  the  audience  was  to  chain  them  to  their  seats,  as 
if  they  were  under  a  spell.  That  was  his  eloquence.  I 
never  heard  such  eloquence.  And  yet  you  always  felt  that 
the  chamber  was  so  full  that  he  had  far  more  behind  him 
than  he  was  giving  the  public.  Reserved  power — that  was 
Webster. 

But  a  word  about  Henry  Clay.  (Loud  applause.) 
Henry  Clay — glorious  "Hal."  He  was  altogether  unlike 
Webster.  Taller  than  Webster,  careless,  reckless,  fear 
less  ;  no  vanity,  no  affectation ;  everything  natural ;  and 
yet,  as  he  did  everything  perfectly  natural,  he  did  every- 


312  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

thing  graceful.  One  of  the  strangest  specimens  of  man. 
Anything  but  handsome;  yet  the  ladies  said  he  was  the 
most  captivating  man  in  America.  He  was  not  much 
better  looking  than  I  am  myself  (applause  and  laugh 
ter)  ;  but  there  was  an  illumination  of  genius,  and  there 
\vas  a  kindness  of  heart,  and  then  he  was  essentially  a  man. 
That  you  felt  when  you  looked  upon  him.  Take  him  all 
in  -all,  he  was  one  of  the  most  remarkable  men  I  have 
ever  seen  in  America.  He  captivated  everyone — the 
schoolboys  as  well  as  everyone  else.  It  was  all  ' 'hurrah 
for  Clay."  And  the  newsboys — they  all  knew  him,  and 
he  knew  them  and  their  tricks,  too.  I  will  give  you  an 
instance.  As  he  was  walking  down  Pennsylvania  Ave 
nue  one  morning  his  friends,  the  newsboys,  were  play 
ing  with  a  young  goat.  He  thought  they  were  torment 
ing  it  and  he  said  to  them,  "Get  away."  And  they  got 
away,  when  the  goat  made  a  lunge  at  him  and  downed 
him  (loud  laughter  and  applause),  and  there  he  was, 
struggling  with  the  goat  while  the  newsboys  all  stood  a 
short  distance  away  enjoying  the  joke.  (Laughter.) 
Why,  the  ladies  came  down  in  their  carriages  to  see  Mr. 
Clay  in  the  middle  of  the  street  wrestling  with  the  goat. 
They  did  not  know  what  to  make  of  it.  (Loud  laughter.) 
Finally  he  cried  out,  "Boys,  what  am  I  going  to  do  with 
this  goat?"  After  another  laugh  they  told  him,  "Mr.  Clay, 
let  go  his  horns  and  run."  And  he  did.  He  ran  into 
a  jeweler's  store  close  by  and  slammed  the  door  behind 
him.  (Loud  laughter  and  long-continued  applause.)  But 
you  should  hear  him  speak.  When  he  arose  and  began 
speaking,  I  tell  you  he  would  not  utter  six  sentences  when 
you  would  hear  the  silk  dresses  of  the  ladies  rustle  all 
along  the  galleries  as  if  a  wind  had  passed  through  the 
Senate  chamber.  The  moment  he  commenced  speaking 
and  as  he  went  on  the  excitement  would  increase,  until 
it  aroused  the  whole  Senate,  and  the  excitement  would 
rise  and  rise  until  it  would  burst  out  into  an  explosion; 
and  then  he  would  change  his  manner  and  denounce  the 
Democratic  administration,  and  he  would  denounce  it 
pretty  severely.  Cast  your  eyes  around  those  galleries 
and  you  would  see  some  of  the  prettiest  eyes  in  the  world 
flashing  scorn  at  the  Democracy,  and  the  fans  go  up 
threateningly,  like  bayonets,  as  though  they  would  ex 
terminate  the  Democratic  party.  Then  he  would  change 
his  manner,  soften  his  tone  and  recapitulate  the  sufferings 
of  the  people,  and  how  the  Democrats  were  wrong- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  313 

ing  the  people,  and  you  would  see  their  fair  heads  bowed, 
the  eyes  growing  dim,  and  the  cheeks  growing  pale,  until 
they  seemed  as  though  they  were  themselves  the  only 
sufferers  of  the  calamity.  And  he  could  do  it  with  any 
audience,  an  audience  of  backwoodsmen  as  well  as  an 
audience  of  Senators.  It  was  the  magic  of  genius,  the 
true  fire  of  matchless  eloquence.  Friend  and  foe  hung 
upon  his  words  spellbound,  and  he  charmed  them  all. 
(Enthusiastic  applause.) 

But  I  must  say  a  few  words  of  John  C.  Calhoun.  En 
tirely  different  from  the  others,  I  will  speak  of  the  man 
to-night  as  I  saw  and  knew  him.  Tall,  slender,  stately, 
eloquent,  courteous — as  fine  a  type  of  a  Southern  gentle 
man  as  I  have  seen  in  the  city  of  Washington  was  John 
C.  Calhoun.  His  conversational  powers  could  not  be 
surpassed.  He  had  earnestness,  zeal,  enthusiasm,  and 
especially  what  I  would  call  intense  earnestness,  and  that 
he  carried  into  everything.  To  me  he  always  appeared 
more  of  a  missionary  than  a  politician,  and  his  party  was 
more  like  a  sect  than  like  a  party.  They  looked  up  to 
him  as  a  prophet,  and  in  every  respect  his  light  was  un 
limited.  I  have '  not  time  to  describe  the  man.  His 
whole  appearance  was  grand,  intellectual.  It  was  spir 
itual — what  I  would  call  spiritual.  I  have  never  known 
a  man — a  public  man  or  a  private  man — have  more  that 
was  spiritual  and  less  that  was  animal  in  his  possession 
than  John  C.  Calhoun.  There  was  not  a  mean,  sordid, 
sensual  feature  in  his  whole  countenance.  I  believe  in 
my  soul  he  was  one  of  the  most  sincere  men  I  ever  met. 
We  called  him  an  Abstractionist.  Why?  Because  we 
could  not  understand  him.  He  seemed  to  live  in  an  ab 
stract  world.  His  life  was  more  like  spirit  life  than  worldly 
life.  The  intensity  of  his  faith  made  him  look  further 
into  the  future.  He  saw  with  his  soul  as  we  see  with 
the  eyes.  He  saw  signs  in  the  heavens  that  none  of  us 
saw;  and  by  the  light  of  what  has  transpired  since  his 
day,  he  seems  to  have  been  more  like  a  prophet  than  a 
politician.  And  if  John  C.  Calhoun  had  lived  this  great 
and  terrible  struggle  would  never  have  come  off.  (Great 
applause.)  His  followers  went  much  further  than  he  ever 
intended  and  they  wanted  the  great  wisdom  that  he  pos 
sessed.  I  owe  this  to  him  to-night — because  his  memory 
in  some  respects  has  not  been  fairly  treated.  I  never 
agreed  with  him,  of  course,  in  politics,  but  I  want  to  do 
justice  to  the  man.  When  he  spoke  he  stood  perfectly 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

perpendicular  and  never  changed  his  position.  He  kept 
his  eye  fixed  upon  the  president — and  what  an  eye  it  was ! 
So  intense,  so  full  of  fire,  so  full  of  power,  and  at  the 
same  time  so  full  of  what  I  call  a  sort  of  magical  spirit. 
And  then  he  would  pour  out  his  unlimited  rhetoric;  un 
limited  short  sentences,  every  sentence  a  proposition,  and 
every  proposition  a  link  in  the  chain  of  logic,  as  strong 
as-  iron  and  as  hard  as  ebony.  It  was  not  what  is  called 
logic  in  our  Northern  language.  It  was  logic  at  white 
heat,  and  nothing  could  withstand  it.  It  carried  every 
thing  before  it.  His  earnestness,  his  enthusiasm,  his  in 
tense  force  seemed  to  sweep  everything  before  him.  Half 
the  time  we  Senators  could  not  understand  him,  for  half 
the  time  he  would  address  himself  to  Daniel  Webster. 
They  understood  each  other,  and  they  were  the  only  two 
men  in  the  Senate  who  did.  I  believe  that  of  all  the 
men  in  that  body  Daniel  Webster,  of  Massachusetts,  and 
John  C.  Calhoun,  of  South  Carolina,  were  the  only  two 
who  understood  one  another.  Webster,  while  Calhoun 
was  speaking,  would  lean  over  his  desk,  composed,  dig 
nified,  powerful,  and  fix  his  great  black  eye  on  Calhoun's 
face,  and  "glower*'  at  him,  as  the  Scotch  would  say.  He 
would  drink  what  he  said.  And  when  Webster  spoke 
Calhoun  would  sit  bolt  upright  in  his  seat,  as  though  he 
wanted  to  penetrate  his  very  soul.  They  left  us  other 
Senators  out  of  the  question,  as  though  we  were  not 
worthy  of  attention.  I  could  give  you  a  number  of  an 
ecdotes  to-night  about  Daniel  Webster,  Calhoun,  Clay 
and  Jackson;  but  I  have  talked  far  more  than  I  expected 
to  be  able  to  do.  And  I  have  clone  it  because  you  have 
been,  not  only  a  patient,  but  indulgent  audience;  and  if 
I  always  have  such  .audiences  as  you  are  I  will  live  for 
ever.  (Loud  and  long-continued  applause.)  I  am  going 
to  drop  my  doctor  to-morrow,  you  have  done  so  much 
for  me.  I  am  glad  you  have  given  me  this  oppor 
tunity,  and  I  am  proud  and  glad  you  have  given  me  the 
chance  to  address  such  a  magnificent  audience  as  is  pres 
ent  here  to-night. 

The  closing  words  of  the  General  died  away  in  a  storm 
of  enthusiastic  applause  that  was  renewed  again  and  again, 
which  evidenced  how  highly  the  brilliant  assembly  appre 
ciated  the  distinguished  soldier  and  statesman. 

Rev.   Father  Malone,   of  Brooklvn,   E.    D.,  was  the 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  315 

next  speaker.  He  said  that  it  was  customary  to  make  an 
apology  before  addressing  an  audience,  but  he  should 
waive  that  custom  because  the  occasion  naturally  sug 
gested  thoughts  to  every  man,  which  it  was  natural  he 
should  express,  especially  when  he  saw  such  a  magnifi 
cent  gathering  assembled  for  such  a  noble  purpose,  and 
he  would  add  when  he  heard  such  an  eloquent  speaker 
as  Major-General  Shields,  the  hero  of  two  wars  and  ex- 
Senator  for  three  states.  They  knew  he  was  the  native 
of  a  soil  from  which  many  of  them  had  come,  and  he 
would  say  that  he  felt  proud  of  that  son  of  the  Emerald 
Isle,  the  hero  of  El  Molino,  Chapultepec  and  Winchester. 
General  Shields  was  not  ashamed  of  his  native  country, 
nor  should  anyone  be  ashamed  of  it.  But  while  not 
ashamed  of  Ireland  and  cherishing  feelings  of  Irish  pa 
triotism,  he  allowed  his  mind  to  be  imbued  with  warm 
attachment  to  his  adopted  country  and  had  done  noble 
and  generous  work  in  its  interests.  He  (the  speaker) 
was  proud  to  see  a  citizen  of  Ireland  rise  to  such  eminent 
dignity.  He  was  a  noble  type  of  the  Irish-born  citizen 
of  the  United  States.  The  object  which  brought  him 
and  them  together  was  sacred  and  glorious.  He  (the 
speaker)  took  a  little  pride  in  stating  that  his  congrega 
tion  were  the  first  to  send  a  donation  to  the  plague-stricken 
people  of  the  South.  They  forwarded  one  hundred  dol 
lars  to  a  Catholic  clergyman  of  the  South  with  strict 
injunctions  to  make  no  distinction  in  distributing  it  be 
tween  Protestant  or  Catholic,  Jew  or  Gentile.  (Loud 
cheers.)  The  clergyman  to  whom  they  sent  it  died  be 
fore  he  received  the  gift.  Another  died  after  putting  his 
signature  to  the  check.  A  third  to  whom  it  was  sent 
wrote  and  gave  him  (the  speaker)  the  information  that  the 
donation  in  question  was  the  first  which  the  South  had  re 
ceived.  (Cheers.)  This  is  not  all.  They  hoisted  that 
flag  first,  when  at  Sumter  the  sacred  symbol  of  liberty— 
the  stars  and  stripes — was  first  fired  at.  (Prolonged  ap 
plause.)  He  had  no  political  purpose  in  making  that 
statement.  He  said  it  because  it  was  true.  But  in  all 
that  movement  for  the  relief  of  the  suffering  South  there 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

was  nothing  expressed  by  the  North  but  what  was  always 
in  the  heart  of  their  people.  The  Northerners  were  brave 
in  the  battlefield,  and  they  were  generous  in  the  hour  of 
victory.  They  conquered  the  South  to  save  the  interests 
of  all  Americans  and  benefit  the  very  people  they  had  con 
quered.  As  they  faced  them  when  they  were  flushed  with 
victory,  so  they  hastened  to  relieve  them  when  they  were 
borne  down  by  disease.  Everywhere  their  conduct  rep 
resented  what  was  deep  in  the  Northern  soul — love  of  all 
the  citizens  without  distinction  of  any  of  the  United  States. 
(Enthusiastic  cheers.)  The  people  in  that  hall  were  a 
type  of  the  people  everywhere  in  the  North — as  ready 
in  peace  to  give  the  hand  of  friendship  and  brotherhood 
as  in  war  to  subvert  sedition  and  scatter  the  ranks  of  re 
bellion — and  above  all  to  show  that  Christian  charity 
whose  healing  influence  could  not  fail  to  ratify  .union  and 
produce  brotherly  love  and  good  will.  (Loud  and  pro 
longed  cheers.) 

General  Gibson,  U.  S.  A.,  was  the  next  speaker.  He 
said  that  in  the  presence  of  the  large  and  brilliant  audience, 
characterized  by  culture  and  beauty,  assembled  in  the  fair 
city  of  Brooklyn  in  a  cause  of  humanity,  mercy  and  char 
ity,  after  the  eloquent  speeches  of  the  distinguished 
gentlemen  who  preceded  him,  it  behooved  an  humble 
man  like  him  to  speak,  if  not  with  ''bated  breath,"  certainly 
with  considerable  hesitation.  They  had  heard  a  renowned 
soldier,  who  had  distinguished  himself  in  two  wars,  who 
was  scarred  with  wounds  received  under  the  flag  of  the 
United  States  in  Mexico,  and  who  had  rendered  noble 
service  during  the  late  fratricidal  conflict,  and,  in  addi 
tion  to  this,  had  worn  the  toga  of  an  American  Senator 
as  the  representative  of  two  great  states,  and  whose  pres 
ence  recalled  the  memory  of  brilliant  wars  that  produced  a 
race  of  heroes,  among  whom  he  stood  in  the  front ;  in  time 
of  peace,  as  in  time  of  war,  he  likewise  stood  in  the  fore 
front — at  once  an  Irishman  and  an  American,  the  country 
man  of  Sarsneld  and  of  Washington — they  had  heard  him 
and  must  necessarily  listen  with  apathy  to  a  speaker  as 
inferior  as  himself.  He  (the  speaker)  regretted  the  ab- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  817 

sence  of  a  distinguished  gentleman  who  was  expected 
to  preside  on  that  occasion — a  statesman,  a  lawyer  and  a 
soldier — whose  deeds  on  the  battlefield  and  eloquence  in 
the  forum  had  won  him  a  reputation  second  to  none,  and 
whose  noble  defense  of  the  Southerners  a  year  ago  in  that 
hall  met  with  a  sympathetic  response  from  every  mind 
that  was  gifted  with  intelligence  and  every  heart  that 
throbbed  with  love  of  country.  He  meant  Gen.  R.  A. 
Pryor.  (Loud  cheers.)  The  lecturer  had  given  them  his 
recollections  of  the  great  Harry  of  the  West — the  forest- 
born  Demosthenes,  the  second  Patrick  Henry,  the  influ 
ence  of  whose  eloquence,  power  and  patriotism  had  averted 
the  storms  of  sedition.  General  Shields  had  described 
Daniel  Webster,  whose  words  had  sunk  so  deep  into  the 
hearts  of  the  people  of  the  North,  and  so  dimmed  the 
fires  of  the  South  that  discontent  failed  of  its  purpose, 
and  liberty  and  union  were  established  in  the  states  then 
and  forever,  one  and  inseparable.  His  breathing  thoughts 
and  burning  words,  instilled  and  engendered  by  every 
wise  pedagogue,  accompanied  with  "words  of  learned 
length  and  thundering  sound,"  on  the  minds  of  his  pupils, 
and  repeated  in  every  city  in  that  broad  land,  so  affected 
and  impressed  the  hearts  of  that  generation  that  the  suc 
cess  of  the  cause  which  he  advocated  became  inevitable, 
and  brave  and  noble  men  yielded  up  their  lives  to  secure 
it.  He  (the  speaker)  would  repeat  that,  in  the  inmost 
recesses  of  the  Southern  heart,  the  words  of  Webster  car 
ried  love  of  that  union,  unnerved  the  strength  of  the 
blow,  and  made  it  spend  its  force  before  it  fell  upon  its 
object.  Owing  to  him  their  country  became  a  land  of 
unity,  peace  and  concord,  filled  with  loyal  hearts  and 
faithful  hands  in  every  corner  of  its  wide  domain.  (Loud 
cheers.)  And  the  Northern  oak  and  Southern  pal 
metto  sheltered  no  foe  to  their  indivisible  union.  (Re 
newed  cheers.)  General  Shields'  reminiscences  of  the 
great  and  wise  Calhoun  were  deeply  interesting.  To  him 
the  country  was  indebted  for  all  that  was  good  in  the  or 
ganization  of  its  armies,  and  for  success  in  the  time  of 
conflict.  He  formed  that  military  school  of  America 


318  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

which   gave   such  noble   soldiers  to   the   country.     (Pro 
longed  applause.)     But  they  were  not  there  that  night  to 
blazon  the  virtues  or  extol  the  glories  of  friend  or  foe; 
but  to  pour  out  a  tribute  to  a  terrible  affliction.     If  their 
Federal  armies  went  out  to  the  Southerners  in  the  hour  of 
their  rebellion,  their  hearts  went  out  to  them  warmly,  gen 
erously,  earnestly  in  that  grievous  visitation  of  God.     (Re 
newed  applause).     To  help  them  in  the  time  of  need,  to  re 
lieve  their  unequaled  sufferings,  the  widow  gave  her  mite, 
the  poor  man  his  scanty  pittance,  and  the  rich  man  out  of 
his   abundance.       Lazarus    offered    his    rags,    and    Dives 
brought  forth  his  treasures,  and  the  miser  who  clutched  the 
eagle  with  so  desperate  a  grip  that  the  bird  of  Jove  shrank 
under   the    pressure — the    miser    relaxed    his    grasp    and 
dropped  the  coin  into  the  treasury  of  benevolence.     He 
became  more  than  kin  and  more  than  kind.     All  honor 
to  those  benefactors  of  suffering  humanity,  and  all  honor 
to  those  brave  and  generous  souls  who  devoted  health,  and 
life,  and  strength  to  arrest  the  pestilence  "that  walketh  in 
darkness,"  be  it  the  priest  whose  hand  smoothed  the  pillow 
of  death,  or  the  noble  physician  who  confronted  the  plague 
and  risked  life  to  mitigate  agony.     (Loud  cheers.)       All 
honor  to  those  ministering  angels — cool  and  intrepid  as  a 
hero  on  the  field  of  battle — whose  hands  soothed  the  ach 
ing  brow  and  moistend  the  parched  lips  of  burning  fever. 
(Applause.)     The  courage  of  the  field  of  war  was  noble; 
but  glory  led  the  way  and  spurred  the  soldier  to  noble  ac 
tion.     But  the  courage  of  frail  men  and  tender  women 
risking  life  in  the  face  of  the  dreadful  scourge — to  bear  the 
peace  of  Christ  to  souls  forlorn  and  lost  without  them — 
was  the  Godlike  courage  of  the  holy  martyrs.     (Loud  and 
enthusiastic  applause.) 

Rev.  J.  B.  Murray,  pastor  of  the  Metropolitan  (col 
ored)  Mission,  next  addressed  the  meeting.  He  said  that 
he  was  happy  to  be  there  that  night  to  mingle  his  voice 
with  that  of  his  hearers — to  join  heart  and  hand  with  them 
in  that  great  work  of  Christian  charity  performed  in  behalf 
of  their  fever-stricken  brethren  in  the  South.  That  glorious 
outpouring  of  sympathy  and  practical  charity  would  do 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  319 

much  to  weld  the  broken,  chain  of  affection  that  had  been 
severed  by  the  late  war — a  chain  that  bound  man -to  man 
and  connected  earth  with  heaven.  (Loud  applause.)  It 
would  establish  that  eternal  truth  in  the  heart  of  all  think 
ing  men  if  possible  more  firmly  than  ever  that  there  is  one 
common  fatherhood  and  one  common  brotherhood  in  hu 
man  nature.  (Renewed  applause.)  God  grant  that  their 
efforts  might  be  characterized  by  oneness  in  their  progress, 
and  be  blessed  with  success  in  their  termination.  (Loud 
cheers.) 

Rev.  Mr.  Bowdish,  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church, 
next  addressed  the  meeting.  He  said  it  would  be  inju 
dicious  on  his  part  to  occupy  them  long.  He  only  rose 
to  express  his  appreciation  of  the  lecture  given  them  by 
the  honored  gentleman  who  had  addressed  them  first  that 
night.  They  were  greatly  indebted  to  him  for  the  portrai 
ture  of  the  characters  of  four  distinguished  personages 
named  as  the  subject  of  his  lecture,  and  he  (the  speaker) 
was  sure  they  responded  warmly  to  all  he  said  of  the  great-' 
ness  of  those  men.  He  (the  speaker)  watched  carefully 
every  feature  in  that  portraiture,  and  in  each  instance  he 
named — in  each  character  he  mentioned — kindness  of  heart 
was  the  predominant  and  distinguishing  trait.  And  he 
thought  that  if  they  were  alive  and  came  on  that  platform 
their  voice  would  be  heard  there  in  approval  of  that  charity 
for  which  they  were  moving  as  citizens  of  that  great  repub 
lic.  His  (the  speaker's)  heart  was  deeply  touched  lately  at 
the  altar  of  prayer — surrounded  by  persons  of  various  de 
nominations.  One  of  the  most  distinguished  clergymen 
leading  the  way  first  read  the  fifty-fifth  chapter  of  Isaiah, 
and  when  he  closed  the  sacred  volume  he  poured  forth  a 
prayer  for  the  South — for  the  "brethren  and  sisters,"  as  he 
called  them.  And  it  seemed  to  him  (the  speaker)  that 
everyone  responded  without  regard  to  creed  a  hearty 
"Amen !"  And  so  it  seemed  that  night  in  that  place  their 
hearts  responded  to  that  call  of  charity.  They  seemed  to 
have  moved  from  the  sanctuary  of  God,  from  the  place  in 
which  thousands  gathered  for  public  prayer,to  meet  in  that 
hall  for  a  holy  purpose.  He  thoroughly  appreciated  Ine 


320  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

address  they  had  heard  from  General  Shields,  and  his 
earnest  prayer  as  he  retired  was  that  their  honored  friend 
might  live,  if  it  pleased  God,  for  years  to  come;  that  his 
voice  might  be  heard  long-  North  and  South  and  his  brave 
heart  ever  beat  in  sympathy  with  the  interests  of  that 
metropolis.  (Loud  applause). 

During  the  reverend  gentleman's  speech  two  flags — 
torn  by  the  bullets  and  stained  with  the  smoke  of  battle — 
which  had  waved  above  the  heroic  soldiers  of  the  Sixty- 
ninth  in  many  a  long  and  bloody  conflict,  were  noiselessly 
advanced  toward  the  front  of  the  platform.  They  repre 
sented  Ireland  and  America,  and  were  followed  by  a  bat 
talion  of  the  Sixty-ninth  Regiment,  under  Colonel  James 
Cavanagh,  the  Irish  Volunteers,  and  the  Association  of 
the  Veterans  of  the  Mexican  War,  who  stood  behind  the 
flags  with  that  modest  bearing  which  characterizes  those 
gallant  men,  "Corporal"  Tanner  then  rose  and  explained 
the  nature  of  these  flags  and  the  object  of  this  display.  He 
said  the  flags  in  question  were  known  to  the  American 
army  by  the  epithet  of  "Old  Glory."  Old  soldiers  were 
present  on  the  platform  who  had  often  faced  death  in  the 
shadow  of  those  standards.  They  would  not  be  satisfied 
unless  the  meeting  gave  three  cheers  for  those  ragged  ban 
ners  of  the  Sixty-ninth,  and  for  our  honored  statesman, 
jurist  and  general — our  beloved  Shields.  In  compliance 
with  the  corporal's  suggestion,  the  whole  meeting  rose  and 
uttered  three  hearty  and  ringing  cheers. 

The  audience  being  dismissed,  the  escort,  composed 
of  a  battalion  of  the  Sixty-ninth  Regiment,  Colonel  Cava 
nagh  commanding,  Rankin  Post,  the  Alliance  Honor 
Guard  (Capt.  Dennis  Brown),  the  detachment  of  the  Irish 
Volunteers,  under  the  command  of  Capt.  Breslin,  and 
the  Mexican  Veterans  formed  on  the  street,  and  surround 
ing  the  carriage  of  General  Shields,  escorted  him  to  the 
residence  of  Mr.  Murphy,  in  Henry  street,  where  a  recep 
tion  was  held.  The  band  serenaded  the  General,  and  he 
returned  thanks  in  a  fitting  speech.  Others  present  made 
short  speeches,  and  the  occasion  terminated  in  a  formal 
reception.  The  affair  was  a  thorough  success  throughout, 
and  netted  a  goodly  sum  for  the  Sufferers'  Fund. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  321 

Editorial  in  Irish  World. 

GENERAL  SHIELDS  IN  NEW  YORK. 

Thursday,  the  26th  of  September,  came,  and  with  it  came  thunder, 
lightning,  and  rain.  It  was  the  date  of  General  Shield's  lecture  in 
the  Brooklyn  Academy  of  Music.  On  the  same  evening,  and  for 
the  same  noble  object,  two  other  entertainments  were  given — a  grand 
concert  at  Music  Hall  and  a  literary  and  musical  entertainment  at 
the  Atheneum.  It  was,  too,  a  week  of  high  political  excitement. 
Tammany  wrestled  with  the  Tilden  forces  at  Syracuse,  and  the  Clan 
Conkling  crossed  swords  with  the  Administration  faction  at  Saratoga. 
The  papers  were  full  of  the  strife,  and  eyes  were  directed  in  that 
direction  and  could  not  be  diverted  therefrom.  The  26th  was  likewise 
the  night  fixed  for  the  Greenback-Labor  Convention  of  Brooklyn. 
All  things  considered,  perhaps  no  other  night  in  the  whole  year 
could  have  been  more  unpropitious  for  a  lecture — no  matter  who  was 
the  lecturer.  And  yet,  despite  the  inclemency  of  the  weather,  and 
the  rivalry  of  the  two  halls,  and  the  political  hubbub,  hardly  ever,  if 
indeed  ever,  did  so  glorious  an  audience  fill  the  Academy  of  Music. 
For  numbers,  intelligence,  and  enthusiasm,  that  audience  perhaps 
never  was  surpassed.  Never  was  there  a  grander  outpouring  of  the 
City  of  Churches. 

To  be  sure  the  object  was  a  holy  and  humane  one.  The  spectacle 
of  whole  regions  stricken  with  pestilence,  and  perishing,  day  by  day, 
for  the  want  of  assistance,  is  calculated  to  open  all  hearts  and  purses. 
But  the  smoke  of  battle  hides  the  dead  and  the  dying,  and  in  the  din 
and  the  turmoil  of  a  great  political  campaign,  when  old  parties  are 
dying  and  a  new  party  is  being  born  into  the  world,  what  silvery 
tongue  can  make  itself  heard? 

Certainly  no  ordinary  orator  could  dare  to  go  before  the  people 
on  such  a  night.  No  orator  who  valued  his  rhetorical  reputation. 
And  on  such  occasions — during  political  convention  weeks — no  orator 
ever  does  venture  to  call  the  great,  surging,  excited  people  to  a  halt. 
They  never  do  it.  Their  weak  voices  couldn't  be  heard.  But  General 
Shields  is  a  man  that  was  born  to  command.  When  he  sends  out  the 
cry,  "Attention!" — whether  in  field  or  forum,  the  multitude  stand  and 
all  eyes  are  fixed  upon  him.  There  is  no  rule  without  an  exception; 
and  one  notable  exception  in  this  connection  was  Santa  Anna,  the 
commander-in-chief  of  the  Mexican  forces,  who,  when  he  once  began 
to  run  away  from  Shields,  never  halted  until  the  bullet-proof  hero  of 
Cerro  Gordo  uttered  the  word  of  command  at  the  very  gates  of  the 
City  of  Mexico. 

General  Shields  stood  between  two  audiences;  one  before  him 
filling  the  vast  auditorium;  the  other  on  the  stage,  which  receded 
back  to  the  extreme  distance.  Perhaps  never  before  did  a  more 
numerous,  a  more  distinguished,  or  a  more  representative  gathering 
ever  assemble  on  the  stage  of  the  Academy.  There  were  fully  six 
hundred  there.  Are  we  not  right  in  calling  that  an  audience  in  itself? 
Of  this  number  about  two  hundred  were  priests  and  ministers  of  the 
various'  religious  denominations.  There  were  General  Gibson  and 
officers  of  the  U.  S.  Army;  there  was  "Corporal"  Tanner,  State 


322  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

Commander  of  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  with  his  posts; 
there  were  the  gray-headed  Veterans  of  the  Mexican  War — old  com 
rades  of  Shields;  there,  too,  was  Colonel  Cavanagh,  of  the  Sixty- 
ninth  Regiment,  with  his  drum  corps  and  his  tattered  battle-flags. 
There,  likewise,  sat  the  Mayor,  the  chief  magistrate  of  the  city,  to 
do  honor  to  the  occasion. 

Down  in  the  orchestra  was  the  United  States  Band,  which  was 
sent  thither  expressly  by  order  of  the  commanding  general. 

General  Shields,  it  will  be  remembered,  rose  trom  his  sick  bed 
to  speak  on  this  occasion.  He  was  feeling  very  badly  all  that  day. 
"I  fear,"  he  said,  "I  fear  I  will  not  be  able  to  go  through  with  it; 
but — but — (and  his  determined  eye  lit  up) — I'll  speak  to-night  for  the 
South  if  I  were  to  die  in  the  venture!'' 

Half-past  seven  p.  m.  is  at  hand.  "Light  up!"  There  is  a 
flash  of  electricity — the  gas  in  the  great  hall  is  literally  struck  by 
lightning — and  instantly  a  thousand  jets  are  in  a  blaze!  We  go  to 
the  stage  door.  The  space  in  front  of  the  Academy  is  black  with 
people  and  from  opposite  directions  come  converging  streams  in 
Montague  street.  The  doors  are  thrown  open  and  in  twenty  minutes 
the  house  is  packed.  The  stage,  too,  presently  fills  up.  Civilians 
and  military,  lay,  and  clerics,  take  their  places.  Hark!  It  is  the 
rattle  of  drums  and  the  clashing  of  cymbals  and  the  notes  of  the  ear- 
piercing  fife  without.  The  General  with  his  escort  enters.  All  is 
hushed.  He  is  very  pale,  very  attenuated.  Surely  the  aged  and  shat 
tered  frame  needs  that  cane  to  aid  it  along.  Silence  reigns  and  all  eyes 
and  all  hearts  turn  toward  him,  Simultaneously  all  on  the  stage  rise  to 
their  feet.  A  voice:  "Three  cheers  for  General  Shields!"  The  great 
audience  rose,  too,  and  then,  as  the  band  played  "Hail  to  the  Chief," 
and  as  the  recollections  of  the  victories  of  Buena  Vista,  Cerro  Gordo, 
Contreras,  Chapultepec,  and  Winchester,  flashed  back;  then,  as  the 
chieftain  that  had,  a  generation  ago,  led  in  triumph  the  citizen  soldiery 
of  New  York  up  to  and  into  the  City  of  Mexico  stood  before  the 
remnants  of  his  comrades  in  arms;  then,  as  the  only  man  that  had 
ever  successfully  crossed  swords  with  Stonewall  Jackson  came  in 
sight;  then,  as  he  that  had  worn  the  toga  of  the  Senator  with  honor 
and  kept  the  ermine  of  the  judge  untarnished  showed  his  beloved 
face;  then,  as  this  brave-hearted  man,  whose  aged  body  is  covered 
with  scars  and  whose  great  soul  is  filled  with  mercy — then,  when 
General  Shields,  now  a  feeble  sick  man  himself,  presented  himself 
before  the  people  of  Brooklyn  to  lift  his  voice  in  behalf  of  the  dis 
tressed  of  the  South, — then  went  up  a  tempest  of  ringing  cheers  such 
as  never,  never  before  resounded  within  the  four  walls  of  that  house! 
Never! 

It  did  the  old  man  good.  General  Shields  declared  the  enthusi 
astic  reception  given  him  did  him  more  benefit  than  all  the  doctors. 
"It  made  a  new  man  of  him."  How  could  it  have  been  otherwise? 
General  Shields  must  have  been  more  or  less  than  man  could  such 
an  ovation  have  had  no  influence  on  him. 

At  the  close  of  the  lecture  the  General  was  escorted  with  military 
honors  to  the  residence  of  Captain  Murphy,  464  Henry  street,  where 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

General  Shields  had  been  staying  since  his  illness,  and  where,  with  a 
number  of  invited  friends,  an  enjoyable  hour  was  spent. 

Captain  Murphy  himself  is  a  veteran  of  two  wars.  He  was  a 
drummer  boy  in  Mexico,  and  his  services  in  the  late  war  for  the 
Union  won  for  him  the  esteem  of  his  comrades,  and  the  especial 
recognition  of  President  Lincoln  himself. 

The  Captain's  wife  is  a  relative  of  the  illustrious  Irish  Revolu 
tionist,  Wolfe  Tone.  Is  it  not  fitting  that  in  such  a  household  the 
foremost  military  man  of  the  Irish  race  of  to-day  should  lay  on 
his  stretcher  in  the  hour  of  discomfiture? 

Next  day  (Friday)  General  Shields  was  driven  to  the  branch 
office  of  the  Irish  World,  in  Brooklyn,  where  all  the  ladies  and 
gentlemen  in  the  establishment,  forty  in  number,  were  introduced  to 
him  and  shook  his  hand.  After  an  address  of  welcome  by  Mr. 
Devyr,  to  which  an  appropriate  reply  was  made,  the  General,  amid 
a  parting  cheer  from  the  office,  drove  to  the  house  of  Mr.  Ford, 
where  he  took  dinner,  and  thence  to  the  railroad  depot  for  Cincinnati. 

The  Irish  World  is  no  inordinate  admirer  of  wars  or  warriors; 
but  it  believes  in  fair  play — especially  toward  one  who  risked  life 
and  limb  in  a  cause  which  those  who  secretly  sought  to  injure  so 
openly  professed  to  espouse. 

But  the  people  were  not  unjust  to  Shields.  State  Legislator, 
State  Auditor,  Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court — almost  every  position 
of  honor  in  their  giving  was  placed  upon  his  shoulders.  One  notable 
proof  of  his  popularity  stands  prominently  forward:  James  Shields 
is  the  only  man  in  the  Republic  ever  chosen  by  three  distinct  states 
to  represent  them  in  the  National  Senate.  The  only  man!  This 
trinity  of  tributes,  which  is  so  conspicuous  a  testimonial  to  his 
exalted  worth,  reflects  glory  on  those  states  themselves.  In  honoring 
a  man  like  Shields  they  did  honor  to  their  own  sense  of  justice  and 
uprightness. 

Shields  was  a  man  of  action  rather  than  a  student.  He  did  not 
devote  his  life  to  the  solution  of  any  great  societary  problem.  He 
was  not,  and  he  did  not  pretend  to  be,  either  a  philosopher  or  a  re 
former.  The  flag  of  his  adopted  country  was  ever  before  his  eyes, 
and,  when  it  was  menaced,  his  sword  sprang  instantly  from  its  scab 
bard.  "Our  Country — may  she  be  always  right!  But,  right  or 
wrong,  our  Country!"  is  ever  the  soldier's  toast.  Is  it  unnatural 
that  Shields'  ardent  temperament  should  have  felt  something  of  this 
sentiment?  Is  it  strange,  either,  that  he,  like  thousands  of  his  coun 
trymen  before  him,  should  have  cast  his  lot  and  linked  his  fortunes 
with  the  Democratic  party? 

Yet  Shields  was  not  hidebound.  He  had  an  eye  to  perceive 
and  a  judgment  to  discern;  and  when  a  political  truth  was  presented 
to  him,  instead  of  antagonizing  it,  as  purblind  and  bigoted  partisans 
do,  he  gave  it  manly  recognition,  regardless  of  the  consequences  of 
that  recognition  to  the  organization  of  which  he  was  a  member. 
On  the  Greenback  doctrine  he  was  thoroughly  sound.  In  conversa 
tion  with  us  he  stated  his  views  fully  and  frankly — views  which  were 
published  at  the  time  in  the  Irish  World,  and  if  he  did  not  push  on 


324  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

to  the  logical  conclusion  of  his  own  reasoning,  this  short-coming,  we 
suppose,  must  be  set  down  to  the  credit  of  that  second  nature  of 
which  association  is  the  mother  and  force  of  habit  is  the  nurse. 

Shields'  views  on  the  Irish  question  are  set  forth  fully  in  our 
biographical  sketch,  and  it  is  unnecessary  to  repeat  them  here.  One 
of  the  burning  desires  of  his  life  was  to  strike  a  blow  for  Mother 
Land.  "I  have  received  four  wounds,"  said  the  old  man,  "in  defense 
of  the  Stars  and  Stripes;  and  I  \vould  cheerfully  receive  four  more 
wounds  to  make  that  flag  (pointing  to  the  green  colors)  the  standard 
sheet  of  Free  Ireland!''  His  public  career  extended  over  a  period 
of  forty  years.  It  was  as  spotless  as  it  was  brilliant,  long  and  varied. 
One  singular  incident  in  connection  therewith — one  that  emphasizes 
the  remark  just  quoted — was  the  fact  that  the  evening  of  the  very 
last  day  of  his  public  life  was  consecrated  to  the  memory  of  Robert 
Emmet!  That  was  on  March  4  last  in  the  city  of  Baltimore.  That 
date  closed  the  last  session  of  the  Forty-fifth  Congress,  and,  with  it, 
closed  General  Shields'  Senatorial  career.  This  tribute  of  Shields  to 
Emmet,  on  the  anniversary  of  the  birth  of  Ireland's  young  martyr, 
and  the  dying  day  of  the  veteran  soldier  and  stateman's  own  official 
existence,  has  something  of  a  poetic  fitness  in  it  that  deserves,  at 
least,  a  passing  mention. 


CHAPTER     XXIII. 


General  Butler,  a  True  Friend  of  General  Shields,  One  of  America's 
Greatest  Lawyers — Heroic  Method  Adopted  to  Reduce  Hours 
of  Labor  in  Factories — Splendid  Address  by  a  Brave  Lawyer — 
His  Efforts  to  Secure  Justice  for  the  Destruction  of  a  Convent 
and  to  Wipe  Out  a  Stain  on  the  Escutcheon  of  Massachusetts — 
Senatorial  Duplicity  and  Parsimony. 


General  Butler  was  one  of  the  ablest  lawyers  of  his  day,  the 
most  painstaking  and  original  in  attack  or  defense.  No  opponent 
could  anticipate  what  he  would  have  to  meet  when  so  crafty  a  lawyer 
as  Butler  was  his  rival.  It  is  conceded  that  he  established  more 
precedents  and  won  more  difficult  cases  than  any  lawyer  in  Massa 
chusetts,  or  in  the  East,  during  his  long  career  as  a  leader  of  the 
American  bar. 

In  politics,  he  was  a  free  lance,  at  times  a  Democrat,  a  Repub 
lican,  or  an  independent.  He,  like  many  other  great  men,  voted  with, 
but  did  not  belong  to,  any  party.  He  never  sacrificed  his  views  or 
abandoned  his  principles  at  the  behest  of  a  caucus.  It  is  to  his  credit 
that  he  was  early  a  friend  of  the  working  classes.  In  1840.  in  Lowell, 
Mass.,  he  favored  the  reduction  of  the  hours  of  labor  to  ten  in 
number,  since  work  in  the  factories  for  longer  hours  had  proved 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  325 

very  detrimental  to  the  health  of  the  operatives.  The  capitalists  who 
controlled  the  corporations  violently  opposed  the  movement,  but,  not 
withstanding  their  opposition,  nine  out  of  ten  state  representatives 
were  elected  in  favor  of  the  ten-hour  law.  Through  a  clerical  blunder, 
which  was  not  allowed  to  be  corrected,  a  new  election  was  ordered 
and  an  attempt  was  made  to  deter  employes  from  re-electing  their 
nine  friends.  The  Hamilton  Corporation,  which  employed  a  very 
large  number  of  men  who  were  in  favor  of  the  ten-hour  law,  a  few 
days  before  the  second  election  placarded  the  following  notice: 
"Whoever  employed  by  this  corporation  votes  the  Ben  Butler  ten- 
hour  ticket  on  Monday  next  will  be  discharged."  Ben  Butler,  on 
his  own  responsibility,  had  hand-bills  circulated  containing  the  fol 
lowing  notice:  "The  workingmen  of  Lowell  will  have  a  meeting 
at  the  City  Hall  on  Wednesday  evening,  at  8  o'clock,  to  hear  an 
address  by  Colonel  B.  F.  Butler,  upon  the  subject  of  this  notice 
(quoting  the  Hamilton  notice):  "Whoever  employed  by  this  corpo 
ration  votes  the  Ben.  Butler  ten-hour  ticket  on  Monday  next  will 
be  discharged,  and  advice  upon  the  question  of  what  shall  be  done 
by  the  workingmen  and  friends  of  the  ten-hour  law  in  view  of  this 
notice  in  the  coming  election."  (Signed  Per  Order.) 

After  the  distribution    of  the   circulars   the   workingmen   were  in 
a   ferment.     The   hall   was   filled   to   suffocation,    and    Colonel    Butler 
was  picked  up  and  rolled  over  the  heads  of  the  audience  and  placed 
on  the  stand.     He  looked  around  for  leading  men  for  president,  vice- 
presidents  and  secretaries,  but  they  were  not  there.     In  the  audience 
he  saw  a  clergyman,  whom  he  asked  to  open  the  meeting  with  a  prayer, 
and  when   he   had   concluded   he    occupied   a   chair  on    the  platform' 
I  hen   Colonel   Butler  said,  in  part:     "Our  fathers  fought  the  battles 
of  the  Revolution,  braving  the  perils  of  war  with  the  British  Empire 
to     establish    one     very     important    and    essential     privilege     to    this 
people,  viz.,  the  right  to  govern  themselves  by  electing  to  their  legis 
latures,  by  votes  cast  in   an   orderly  and  quiet   manner,  according  to 
the    laws,    men   to   represent   th.em   and   their  interests,    such   as   they 
shall    deem   proper.     If,   under    our  republican   form   of   government 
established  by  our  patriotic  fathers,  the  people  of  this  country,  acting 
under   and  in   accordance    with   the    laws,    cannot   govern   themselves 
by  their  votes,  cast  according  to  their  consciences,  then  the  Revolution 
was  a  failure.     If  the  workingmen  can  be  deprived  of  their  freedom 
and  rights  by  threats  of  starvation  of  themselves  and  their  wives  and 
their  children,   when   they   act  according  to  the  laws  and  their  own 
judgment,  then  they  had  better  be  slaves,  indeed,  having  kind  mas 
ters,   instead  of  being  freemen,    who  are   only  at   liberty  to  do   what 
their  taskmasters  impose  upon   them,   or   starve.     And   this    question 
must   be    settled  here  and   now.     On   the    next    election    depends   the 
whole    politics    of    the    state;    and,    therefore,    the    whole   power    and 
wealth  of  corporate  influence  in  the  state   has  been   brought   to  bear 
upon  these   weak  men,  the  aldermen,   to   do  us  the   great  wrong  of 
nullifying  the  last  election.     What  have  we  done?     So  great  a  wrong 
and  outrage  would  justify  revolution;  it  would  justify  us  in  any  pro 
ceeding  to  recover  our  liberties,  for  we  have  done  no   wrong.     One  . 
of  the  corporations,  where  large  numbers  of  workmen  are  employe;;!, 
and  get  small  enough  wages  for  good  work,  has,  as  the  representative 
of  all  the  corporations,  issued  the  notice  in  question.     You  have  shown 
yourselves  to  be  the  party  of  law  and  order,  seeking  to  do  everything 
according  to  the  law,  and  not  otherwise,  and  now  you  are  told  that 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

if  you  exercise  your  rights  as  freemen  in  the  manner  your  consti 
tution  points  out,  you  are  not  only  not  to  be  permitted  to  enjoy 
any  of  the  divine  blessings  which  the  reverend  clergyman  has  invoked 
upon  your  heads,  but  you  are  not  even  to  be  permitted  to  suffer 
in  freedom  and  peace  the  primeval  curse  of  the  Almighty — 'By  the 
sweat  of  thy  face  thou  shalt  eat  thy  bread.'  You  gave  up  God's 
blessing  long  ago  when  you  were  obliged  to  work  for  these  tyrants, 
but  you  could  not  see  your  children  starve,  and,  therefore,  you  sub 
mitted  to  the  punishment  of  His  curse  and  asked  by  the  sweat  of 
your  face  to  eat  your  bread.  Now,  even  this  is  to  be  taken  from 
you,  unless  you  vote  as  your  masters  permit  you  to  do,  and  thereby 
become  their  slaves.  This  is  an  unlawful  threat  to  use  unlawful  force 
upon  you,  for  it  takes  away  your  right  to  govern  yourselves  according 
to  your  consciences.  You  have  only  complied  with  the  law;  they 
have  resorted  to  force.  They  avow  an  intention  to  oppress  you;  you 
have  only  shown  an  intention  to  assert  your  rights  in  a  lawful  manner. 
I  know  the  power  of  these  corporation.  I  know  many  of  the  men 
who  have  been  in  charge.  They  have  made  a  mistake  in  the  appeal 
to  force.  When  that  weapon  is  tried,  they  are  weak  and  you  are 
strong.  They  have  their  mills  and  machinery,  their  bricks  and  their 
mortar,  and  that  is  the  extent  of  their  power.  You  are  stronger 
than  they.  You  have  your  right  arms  and  your  torches,  and  by 
them  we  will  blot  out  this  accursed  outrage. 

"As  God  lives  and  I  live,  by  the  Living  Jehovah,  if  one  man 
is  driven  from  his  employment  by  these  men,  because  of  his  vote,  I 
will  lead  you  to  make  Lowell  what  it  was  twenty-five  years  ago — a 
sheep-pasture  and  a  fishing  place;  and  I  will  commence  by  applying 
th'e  torch  to  my  own  house.  Let  them  come  on.  As  we  are  not  the 
aggressors,  we  seek  not  this  awful  contest. 

"We  cannot  vote  Monday  under  such  a  threat.  We  will  vote 
as  freemen  and  not  as  slaves.  We  have  given  them  here  and  now 
notice  of  our  solemn  determination;  let  them  take  up  the  gauntlet 
we  .hrow  down,  if  they  dare.  We  must  vote  next  Monday  as  free 
men,  or  we  do  not  vote  at  all;  no  election  will  be  held.  They  shall 
have  Thursday  and  Friday  in  which  to  adopt  or  repudiate  this  threat 
of  theirs  to  the  workingmen  of  Lowell. 

"Let  us  wait  and  see  what  they  mean  to  do,  and  we  will  notify 
them  that  this  meeting  stands  adjourned,  to  meet  here  again  on 
Saturday  evening,  to  hear  their  answer,  and  then  we  have  the  Sabbath 
before  us  in  which  to  act.  and  'the  better  the  day  the  better  the  deed.' 
Now.  let  us  all  go  quietly  home.  Do  not  do  anything  or  say  anything 
that  will  give  our  enemies  any  hold  upon  us.  I  know,  as  a  lawyer, 
where  I  stand  in  saying  what  I  said,  and  I  desire  in  this  matter  that 
you  will  carefully  follow  my  advice.  If  we  must  come  to  blows,  it 
must  be  upon  their  invitation." 

That  speech  won  the  day  and  freed  the  workingmen  of  Lowell 
from  the  attempt  of  their  employers  to  own  them  body  and  soul. 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  now — fifty  years  later — there  are  so  few 
lawyers  who  dare  speak  and  act  so  bravely.  It  is  time  that  threats, 
expressed  or  implied,  of  discharge  for  the  crime  of  exercising  the 
right  of  a  freeman  at  the  ballot  box  ceased  forever  in  this  Nation. 
On  the  eve  of  another  presidential  election,  would-be  leaders  of  the 
working  classes  would  do  well  to  read  and  re-read  General  Butler's 
speech  to  the  workingmen  of  Lowell  and  familiarize  voters  therewith. 

It  may  be  the  means  of  preventing  thousands  of  employers  from 
posting  notices  in  their  factories,  or  elsewhere,  that  if  a  certain  can 
didate  be  not  elected  president,  the  workingmen  need  not  expect 
work  the  day  after  election,  as  the  factory  will  be  closed. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  327 

If  such  language  is  not  treason,  what  is?  If  such  coercion  is  long 
submitted  to,  what  kind  of  creatures  will  voters  become?  Much  has 
been  said  of  the  evils  of  tissue  ballots  in  some  states,  unfair  counts 
and  intimidation,  but  what  greater  intimidation  can  be  used  than 
such  notices,  which  are  threats  of  starvation? 

When  General  Butler  was  a  member  of  the  Massachusetts  Legis 
lature,  in  1852,  he  endeavored  to  wipe  out  a  disgrace  upon  the  state 
by  the  passage  of  a  bill  recompensing  the  Sisters  of  St.  Ursula — an 
order  established  in  1536 — for  the  burning  of  their  convent  in  Charles- 
town,  Mass.,  on  August  16,  1834,  by  a  mob,  who  first  set  dogs  upon 
the  female  pupils  attending  it,  and  then  destroyed  the  building,  but 
sectarianism  arid  religious  prejudice  were  so  strong  that  clergymen 
preached  against  the  bill  and  defeated  it.  The  convent  was  erected 
upon  a  beautiful  eminence,  known  as  Mount  Benedicto,  twin  hill  with 
Bunker  Hill  in  Charlestown.  Its  blackened  ruins  still  stand,  a  grim 
monument  of  religious  persecution  and  injustice  in  the  state  of  Otis, 
Adams,  Hancodk,  Franklin,  Webster,  Everett,  Sumner  and  Wendell 
Phillips. 

It  is  very  strange  that  none  of  these  great  champions  of  liberty 
and  freedom  ever  exerted  themselves  to  do  justice  to  the  Sisters  whose 
property  was  thus  destroyed. 

A  few  years  ago  the  Colonial  Parliament  at  Quebec  paid  a  relig- 
ous  order  a  debt  due  for  a  century.  There  is  no  statute  of  limitations 
for  a  debt  of  honor. 

General  Butler  won  laurels  as  a  major-general  of  volunteers  in 
the  Civil  War  and  served  afterward  with  distinction  in  Congress. 

General  Butler,  a  Republican,  nominated  General  Shields  for 
doorkeeper  of  the  House  when  it  was  Democratic.  The  position  was 
worth  $200  a  month,  while  General  Shields'  pension  was  only  $31.25, 
and  he  was  trying  to  support  his  family  by  lecturing.  That  General 
Butler  was  a  real  friend  of  General  Shields  is  placed  at  rest  by  his 
application  for  increase  of  pension  sent  to  General  Butler  about  the 
time  he  made  the  nomination. 

It  was  made  before  the  Democrats  had  held  a  caucus,  and  action 
was  deferred  until  General  Field,  an  ex-Confederate,  who  had  left  the 
country  to  serve  in  the  Egyptian  army,  was  selected.  During  a  lengthy 
debate,  General  Butler  set  forth  the  poverty  of  General  Shields,  his 
military  services,  as  well  as  his  services  as  senator,  and  urged  his 
election  as  a  reward  to  an  old,  maimed  Union  soldier,  who  could 
decline  if  he  did  not  wish  to  accept  the  profitable  position  in  question. 
After  much  political  cross  firing,  General  Shields  was  defeated,  and 
the  Democrats,  to  square  themselves,  voted  to  place  him  on  the 
retired  list  as  a  brigadier-general.  The  Senate  was  solidly  Repub 
lican,  and  these,  the  heroes  of  many  a  fight  in  state  and  national 
Republican  conventions,  united  to  a  man  in  opposing  General  Shields' 
retirement. 

So  strong  was  the  General  that  the  Republicans,  fearing  he  would 
succeed,  amended  the  bill  by  adding  General  Grant's  name  thereto, 
which  would  entitle  the  latter  to  over  three  times  the  pay  of  the  former. 

It  was   openly  charged,  and  not  successfully   disproven,   that  the 


328  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

change  was  made  to  kill  the  bill,  which  proved  true.  Elaine,  Conk- 
ling,  Perkins,  Edmunds  and  other  stay-at-homes  during  wars  fought 
manfully  against  General  Shields'  interests,  with  a  zeal  worthy  of  a 
better  cause,  while  Oglesby,  the  lieutenant  who  had  charge  of  him 
while  wounded  at  Cerro  Gordo,  and  Davis,  both  of  Illinois,  did  all 
they  could  to  defeat  the  bill,  and  to  their  disgrace  be  it  said  they 
succeeded. 

As  soldiers,  Oglesby's  rank  in  comparison  to  that  of  General 
Shields  will  ever  be  relatively  what  they  were  at  Cerro  Gordo,  but  as 
an  office  seeker  he  distanced  General  Shields,  and  became  senator 
by  openly  violating  the  letter  and  spirit  of  the  Constitution  of  Illinois. 
No  words  of  commendation  can  be  found  that  would  do  justice  to 
Senator  Cockerill's  efforts  in  behalf  of  General  Shields,  while  the 
scholarly  Lamar  and  the  eloquent  Voorhees  surpassed  all  others  in 
the  gallant  fight  they  made.  But  the  fact  that  General  Shields  had 
to  pawn  the  swords — which  now  are  in  a  case  with  those  of  Ethan 
Allen  and  Hancock  the  Superb — while  Grant  was  being  entertained 
abroad  by  crowned  heads  and  was  not  poor,  was  of  no  avail.  They 
were  put  on  an  equal  basis  for  relief,  and  the  absurdity  killed  the 
measure,  as  amended. 

From  such  friendship  for  old,  decrepit  and  impoverished  soldiers, 
Good  Lord,  deliver  them. 

The  day  before  the  vote  was  taken  on  General  Butler's  resolution 
to  elect  General  Shields  doorkeper,  I  called  a  meeting  on  the  subject, 
which  was  attended  by  a  veteran  of  the  Mexican  War,  now  a  circuit 
judge,  an  ex-congressman,  three  ex-members  of  the  Illinois  Legis 
lature,  a  prominent  city  official,  and  several  merchants,  who  united 
in  a  telegram  to  a  Democratic  congressman,  who  afterward  became 
mayor  of  Chicago,  requesting  him  to  vote  for  General  Shields.  He 
ignored  our  advice,  but  contributed  a  valuable  lot  to  a  school  fund 
afterward,  for  the  privilege  of  introducing  General  Shields  at  a  lecture 
he  delivered  for  the  benefit  of  the  school. 

It  is  dangerous  to  illtreat  veterans,  if  one  wants  office,  and  who 
doesn't? 

While  General  Black  was  pension  commissioner  ex-Governor 
Oglesby,  who  opposed  placing  General  Shields  on  the  retired  list  as 
a  brigadier-general,  applied  for  a  pension  for  himself.  I  cannot 
give  the  exact  language  used  by  him,  as  my  request  for  a  copy  of 
his  application  has  been  ignored,  but  I  remember  the  substance  of  it, 
which  was,  "not  to  view  it  with  a  critic's  eye,"  adding  that  he  always 
felt  that  he  was  "entitled  to  a  pension  for  services  rendered  in  the 
Mexican  War."  Whether  his  request  was  granted  or  not  I  do  not 
know  or  care.  He  was  a  comparatively  rich  man  then,  having  mar 
ried  rich,  and  when  I  stood  on  the  eminence  on  which  his  house  stands 
at  Elkhart,  111.,  the  day  of  his  funeral,  and  saw  the  extent  of  his 
domain,  I  wished  every  old  soldier  had  a  tithe  of  the  comforts  he  died 
in  possession  of.  Senator  Davis  was  an  able  jurist,  before  whom 
I  have  tried  cases.  He  invested  in  Chicago  real  estate  and  became 
rich  through  the  enterprise  of  his  neighbors,  who  improved  their 
property.  Davis  was  a  very  shrewd  politician,  aided  Lincoln  to 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  329 

defeat  Seward  for  the  nomination,  and  secured  a  federal  judgship  from 
the  President.  Senator  Davis  died  rich  and  left  his  family  all  he 
possessed.  The  lame,  halt  and  blind,  the  sick  and  infirm,  the  aged 
and  decrepit  were  not  remembered  in  his  will.  He  was  thrifty  and 
honest,  wise  and  conservative,  upon  the  whole,  a  good  citizen. 


CHAPTER     XXIV. 


Death  of  General  Shields  on  a  Lecturing  Tour,  at  Ottumwa,  Iowa, 
on  Sunday,  June  i,  1879 — Funeral  at  Carrollton,  Mo.,  Attended 
by  Prominent  Citizens  from  St.  Louis— Military  Escort— Reli 
gious  Services — His  Unmarked  Grave — Attempt  to  Induce  Fel 
low  Townsmen  to  Erect  a  Monument  to  His  Memory. 


General  Shields  died  suddenly  at  Ottumwa,  Iowa,  at 
half-past  ten  o'clock  Sunday  night,  June  i.  He  had  ap 
peared  in  his  usual  health  in  the  morning  and  ate  a  hearty 
supper  at  six  o'clock,  after  which  he  wrote  several  letters ; 
but  just  before  retiring  he  complained  of  a  pain  in  his 
chest,  and  shortly  afterward  said  to  his  niece  that  he  was 
dying,  and  in  thirty  minutes  expired  sitting  in  his  chair, 
remaining  conscious  to  the  last.  He  lectured  in  Ottumwa 
on  Wednesday  evening  and  had  remained  there  visiting 
relatives.  His  body  left  Ottumwa  for  his  home  in  Car 
rollton,  Missouri. 

Few  lives  in  this  prosaic  age  of  ours  show  such  ro 
mantic  features,  and  few  men  have  left  behind  them  such 
a  record  of  noble  thoughts,  gallant  deeds  and  kindly  traits. 
In  the  high  positions  to  which  he  was  called  he  bore  him 
self  with  the  modesty  of  true  greatness,  and  of  him  it 
might  be  said  with  truth : 

"He   wore   the   white   flower  of   a  blameless   life, 
In  the  fierce  light  that  beats  upon  a  throne 
And  blackens  every  spot." 

THE    FUNERAL. 

The  funeral  of  General  Shields  took  place  at  Car 
rollton,  Missouri,  Wednesday.  A  solemn  mass  of  requiem 
was  offered  in  the  Catholic  Church  by  Rev.  J.  Ascheni, 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


LIFE     OF  .GEN.    SHIELDS.  331 

pastor  of  the  church,  as  celebrant.  A  number  of 
other  clergymen  were  present  and  participated  in  the  cere 
monies.  Those  in  attendance  from  St.  Louis  were  ex- 
United  States  Senator  D.  H.  Armstrong,  Colonel  Don 
Morrison,  president  of  the  Mexican  Veteran's  Associa 
tion;  Major  J.  C.  McGinness,  ex-president,  and  Major 
G.  W.  Gibson,  vice-president.  After  the  services  in  the 
church  were  conducted,  .Rev.  Father  Walsh  cf  St. 
Bridget's  Church,  St.  Louis,  delivered  an  eloquent  eulogy. 
Two  companies  of  the  Nineteenth  Infantry,  the  Craig 
Rifles,  headed  by  a  brass  band  of  twenty  pieces,  followed 
the  remains  to  the  cemetery,  two  miles  from  the  town. 

.  How  sleep  the  brave  who  sink  to  rest 
By  all  their  country's  wishes  blessed? 
When  spring,  with  dewy  fingers  cold, 
Returns  to  deck  their  hallowed  mold, 
She  there  shall  dress  a  sweeter  sod 
Than  fancy's  feet  have  ever  trod. 

By  fairy  hands  their  knell  is  rung; 
By   forms   unseen  their   dirge   is    sung; 
There  honor  comes,  a  pilgrim  gray, 
To  bless  the  turf  that  wraps  their  clay; 
And  freedom  shall  awhile  repair, 
To  dwell   a  weeping  hermit  there! 

August  u,  1866,  I  arrived  in  Chicago  from  New  York,  my  native 
state,  and  when  I  stood  beside  the  grave  of  Stephen  A.  Douglas,  in 
an  unfenced  field,  with  an  unpainted  fence  around  his  last  resting- 
place,  hacked  and  splintered  by  vandal  relic  hunters,  I  felt  that  "Fame 
was  but  the  echo  of  a  long-lost  name."  Within  sight  of  it  was  the 
Illinois  Central  railroad,  which  pays  six  per  cent,  of  its  gross  earnings 
into  the  state  treasury,'  and  which  was  the  child  of  his  and  Shields' 
brain,  while  there  towered  above  both  Douglas  University,  which 
owed  its  existence  to  Douglas'  liberality,  but  which  has  since  disap 
peared.  In  March,  1894,  I  knelt  at  General  Shields'  grave,  without  a 
stone  to  mark  it,  and  felt  both  pity  and  contempt  for  the  thousands  of 
his  neighbors  who  permitted  it  to  remain  unmarked.  As  I  had 
helped  to  secure  $50,000  to  complete  the  Douglas  Monument,  I 
wrote  a  letter  to  one  of  the  papers  in  Carrollton,  urging  some  action 
in  behalf  of  a  monument  to  Shields,  offering  to  assist  in  the  city  or 
at  the  Legislature.  I  never  received  any  encouragement,  and  the  pres 
ent  postmaster  has  not,  on  request,  sent  me  a  copy  of  my  letter,  which 
shows  that  he  is  more  interested  in  a  live  officeholder  than  a  dead 
general.  While  at  Springfield,  in  1899,  for  forty  days,  passing  the 
Willard  Statue  bill,  I  sent  a  Kansas  City  member  of  the  Missouri 
Legislature  a  bill  for  a  Shields  monument,  which  he  did  not  introduce. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


CHAPTER     XXV. 


General  Shields'  Greatest  Journalistic  Friends— Their  Struggles  and 
Triumphs— Vast  Influence  for  Good,  for  God,  Race  and  Coun 
try—Glorious  Records  of  Patrick  Ford,  of  the  Irish  World,  and 
Patrick  Donahoe,  of  the  Pilot. 


New  York,  July  12,  1900. 
DEAR  MR.  CONDON: 

I  owe  you  many  apologies,  and  I  feel  very  sorry  for  the  appar- 
rent  indifference  with  which  I  have  treated  your  request  for  my 
photograph  and  biographical  sketch.  Be  assured  I  appreciate  your 
kindly  feelings  for  me  very  sincerely.  As  a  gentleman  and  friend, 
what  other  sentiment  could  I  possibly  entertain  for  you? 

But  every  day  I  am  crowded  with  matters  of  public  interest, 
and  to  these  things  personal  affairs  must  give  place.  Nevertheless, 
I  have  never  forgotten  you  and  your  kindly  request,  but  I  did  not 
well  know  how  to  get  up  a  biographical  sketch  of  myself  for  there 
is  nothing  of  importance  in  my  life  to  note,  and  I  did  not  see  of  what 
use  a  picture  of  me  would  be  in  your  book,  unless  there  was  some 
thing  of  interest  to  give  with  it  in  the  shape  of  letter-press. 

However,  I  desired  my  son  a  week  since  to  send  you  a  por 
trait — half-tone  you  called  it — and  he  promised  to  attend  to  the 
matter  and  to  have  it  ready  by  last  Tuesday.  But  it  is  not  done 
yet.  The  fault,  however,  I  think,  is  not  his. 

To-morrow  I  will  mail  you  a  photograph;  but  really  I  am  puz 
zled  to  know  what  to  put  on  paper  respecting  myself.  Very  sincerely, 

PATRICK  FORD. 
Mr.  William  H.  Condon,  502  Journal  Building,  Chicago. 

New  York,  July  13,  1900. 
Mv  DEAR  MR.  CONDON: 

As  to  the  biographical  sketch  of  myself,  I  really  could  not  ven 
ture  on  anything  like  that  of  myself,  nor  could  I  ask  anyone  else 
to  do  it.  Frankly  speaking,  I  don't  know  of  anything  in  my  career  that 
is  worth  recording,  or  that  would  be  of  special  interest  to  anyone. 

With  regret  for  my  inability  to  oblige  you,  and  with  sincere 
best  wishes  for  yourself  and  your  book,  I  am,  very  truly  yours, 

PATRICK  FORD. 
Mr.  William  H.  Condon,  502  Journal  Building,  Chicago. 

I  regret  exceedingly  that  Patrick  Ford's  modesty  has 
prevented  me  from  adorning  this  work  with  his  portrait. 


LIFE     OF     GEN,    SHIELDS.  33a 

It  is  fitting  that  it  should  appear  herein,  since  he  was  one 
of  General  Shields'  warmest  and  best  friends.  He,  in  his 
Irish  World,  published  more  about  the  General  than  all 
other  newspapers  that  I  have  seen.  He  has  kept  his  mem 
ory  green  and  never  omitted  an  occasion  to  honor  and 
assist  him.  His  paper  is  one  of  the  greatest  weeklies  in 
the  country.  No  newspaper  has  done  mo-re  to  educate 
and  elevate  the  Irish  race.  His  weekly  columns  on  tem 
perance  would  do  credit  to  Father  Matthews',  Archbishop 
Ireland's  or  Frances  E.  Willard's  pen.  His  weekly  cal 
endar  of  important  events  in  Irish  history  tends  to  keep 
alive  the  love  of  home  and  fatherland,  as  well  as  to  in 
form  the  sons  and  daughters  of  Irish  parents  that  they  will 
find  nothing  to  blush  for  in  the  record  of  their  forefathers. 
His  classified  items  for  wage-workers,  as  well  as  his  noted 
events  at  home  and  abroad,  provide  a  valuable  fund  of 
useful  information  for  his  readers,  while  his  editorals  spar 
kle  with  wit  and  are  laden  with  wisdom.  No  one,  in  the 
years  he  has  been  the  editor  and  proprietor  of  the  Irish 
World,  has  doubted  the  sincerity  of  his  views,  or  denied 
that  he  has  had  the  courage  of  his  convictions.  Such  a 
man's  usefulness  cannot  be  estimated — it  is  vast  and  limit 
less.  He  is  a  national  character  and  richly  deserves  to  be 
classed  with  his  friend,  General  Shields. 

After  writing  the  above  account  and  receiving  Mr.  Ford's  letters.  I 
concluded  to  seek  elsewhere  for  biographical  sketches  of  him.  and 
found  two,  one  in  the  Pall  Mall  Budget,  of  September  9,  1886,  which 
contains  the  following  interview:  "I  was  born  in  Galway,  Ireland, 
April  12,  1834,  and  sailed  with  my  father  for  the  United  States  when 
I  was  eight  years  old.  My  father  was  a  man  of  deep  religious  feel 
ing,  extremely  conscientious,  poor,  hard-working;  whatever  good 
there  may  be  in  me  I  attribute  to  him.  We  came  to  Boston,  and 
there  he  put  me  in  a  public  school  until  I  was  thirteen.  Then  it  was 
necessary  for  me  to  stop  schooling  and  try  and  help  him,  to  take 
care  of  myself  at  least.  Nearly  all  my  reading  and  the  notions  I 
got  were  such  as  the  most  ordinary  current  literature  afforded.  I 
got  some  work  as  a  messenger  boy,  and  when  my  errands  took  me 
up  Cornhill  I  couldn't  help  stopping  at  the  second-hand  book 
stalls;  in  this  way  I  read  a  great  deal  of  the  Investigator,  a  journal 
which  openly  attacked  the  whole  Christian  world,  and  I  read  every 
thing  which  came  in  my  way.  I  knew  nothing  of  Ireland  or  its 
history  or  politics.  I  might  as  well  have  been  born  in  Boston.  I 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

knew  nothing  of  England.  I  brought  nothing  with  me  from  Ireland — 
nothing  tangible  to  make  me  what  I  am.  I  had,  consciously,  at  least, 
only  what  I  found  and  grew  up  in  here.  But  the  atrocious  system 
under  which  the  Irish  people  suffered  reached  and  helped  to  form  me 
even  here. 

"I  traveled  footsore,  day  after  day,  through  Boston  for  a  place 
at  a  dollar  a  week,  or  at  any  price.  I  would  see  a  notice,  'Boy 
wanted;  no  Irish  need  apply.'  To  get  that  place  I  must  lie.  I 
couldn't  do  that,  even  if  I  could  have  got  rid  of  the  brogue  which 
would  have  betrayed  me.  My  father  had  taught  me  to  speak  truth 
at  all  costs.  I  went  seeking  in  this  way  for  some  months,  quite 
hopelessly,  finding  constantly  that  the  facts  that  I  was  Irish  and  a 
Catholic  were  always  against  me.  I  was  not  yet  awake  about  Ire 
land,  but  I  began  to  think  early,  to  read  whatever  I  could  lay  my 
hands  on,  and,  when  at  last  I  got  a  little  work  I  stayed  up  at  night 
to  read  and  think  over  what  I  had  read,  and  what  I  had  heard,  and 
what  in  my  own  little  life  I  had  known;  and  I  realized  that  I  was  a 
victim  of  the  condition  of  poverty  and  enslavement  in  which  my 
country  was,  and  I  began  to  see  that  it  was  necessary  for  everyone 
of  Irish  blood  to  do  all  in  his  power  to  change  that  state  of  things. 
I  had  one  place  a  little  while,  and  then  another,  but  I  never  got  at 
ease  in  Boston,  which  was  the  most  English  and  the  most  Irish  city 
in  the  United  States. 

"When  I  was  about  fifteen  I  entered  William  Lloyd  Garrison's 
office  as  printer's  devil,  and  gradually  got  to  do  a  little  on  the 
Liberator.  Then  I  struck  out  for  myself,  and  started  in  1861  the 
Boston  Sunday  Tribune;  it  was  anti-slavery  and  pro-union,  and  lived 
only  for  a  few  numbers.  My  eldest  brother,  who  went  into  the  navy, 
went  down  with  the  'Cumberland;1  my  youngest  brother  went  out  at 
the  age  of  fourteen  as  a  drummer  boy,  came  back  and  enlisted  in  the 
navy  and  served  on  the  Mississippi.  My  father,  then  past  fifty,  but 
bubbling  over  with  patriotic  enthusiasm,  enlisted  for  the  Union. 
There  were  just  two  brothers  left — I  and  the  one  next  to  me  in  age. 
We  did  not  at  once  decide  to  enlist;  but  one  day  when  we  were 
coming  up  the  street  together,  some  of  the  neighbors  pointed  at  us 
and  said,  jestingly,  'See  them  fellows,  their  little  brother  and  their 
old  father  are  gone,  but  they  won't  go.'  So  we  went,  too,  and 
served  for  two  years.  We  were  at  Antietam.  People  think  that 
battles  and  being  killed  are  what  make  war  horrible,  but  these  things 
are  as  nothing  in  comparison  with  war's  real  horror.  The  being  kept 
for  weeks  and  weeks  and  months  at  a  time  in  bare,  wretched  quar 
ters,  with  nothing  in  your  life  really  suited  for  body  or  mind,  without 
books  or  cheerful  companionship,  with  hard,  dry  food  and  coarse, 
rancid  fat  meat,  and  too  little  cf  it  at  that;  with  vermin  and  scurvy 
and  damp  and  cold,  until  heart  despair  and  pig-sty  greed  are  facts,  and 
home  and  decency  a  fading  dream;  and  then,  on  the  march  and  after 
battle,  to  see  the  dead  lying  stark  or  being  hustled  while  yet  dying 
into  holes  hastily  dug,  while  a  stick  marked  'unknown'  is  jammed 
in  above  them;  to  see  the  wounded  huddled  together,  mangled  and 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  335 

gory  in  the  mud  and  snow,  hoping,  and  hoping  vainly,  for  help;  to 
hear  their  terrible  moans  and  cries,  and  to  have  to  go  on  about 
your  own  business  as  if  you  saw  and  heard  nothing — these,  and  worse, 
are  some  of  the  things  which  teach  a  man  what  war  means,  and  the 
awful  responsibility  of  him  who  promotes  war,  and  they  kept  me  think 
ing  of  what  war  would  mean  for  Ireland. 

"On  returning  from  war  I  went  to  Charleston,  S.  C.,  to  take 
charge  of  a  paper  called  the  South  Carolina  Leader,  started  in  the 
interests  of  the  colored  people.  I  stayed  there  about  four  years,  and 
during  the  last  two  started  and  ran  a  Catholic-Irish  paper  called  the 
Gazette;  then,  selling  out  my  interests,  I  came  to  New  York  City  and 
started  the  Irish  World.  My  father  was  a  total  abstainer  and  I  have 
always  been  one.  I  felt  that  next  to  England,  whisky  was  the  enemy 
of  my  race,  and  during  the  seventeen  years  in  which  I  have  been 
running  the  Irish  World  I  have  never  allowed  a  single  line  of 
liquor  advertisements  in  its  columns.  Of  course,  all  these  years  I 
have  thought  unceasingly  of  Ireland,  and  of  how  she  was  to  be  lifted 
up  out  of  her  slavery  and  debasement.  I  had  deep  feelings,  but  I  felt 
also  deep  responsibility;  especially  after  getting  hold  of  my  paper 
did  I  feel  that  I  must  give  correct  ideas,  let  them  make  how  they 
would.  I  saw  that  if  Ireland  were  made  independent  to-morrow  her 
condition  might  still  be  a  very  bad  one,  and  I  saw  that  the  mischief, 
the  bottom  of  it,  was  a  defective  land  system,  and  the  fundamental 
thing  to  put  before  the  people  was  the  ownership  of  the  land  by  the 
people.  Henry  George  has  got  the  idea.  I  don't  care  so  much  for 
his  particular  scheme  or  methods,  but  I  want  some  method  devised 
by  which  that  principle  of  the  people  having  the  land  shall  be  settled. 
I  am  certain  that  it  is  the  true  principle.  They  talk  about  Parnell 
being  cool  and  Davitt  hot  and  impulsive;  but  Parnell,  prosperous  and 
of  partly  English  descent,  has  never  suffered  as  an  Irishman,  while 
Davitt  is  the  son  of  evicted  parents,  and  has  the  wrongs  of  Ireland 
knitted  in  his  bones  and  flowing  in  his  blood.  Yet  he  cherishes  no 
personal  resentments.  He  is  fair,  honorable,  just,  exquisitely  gen 
erous,  but  he  carries  Ireland  in  his  heart  as  a  trust  for  which  he 
will  live  and  for  which  he  will  die.  I  believe  utterly  in  Michael 
Davitt,  so  utterly  that,  although  I  have  a  strong  will  of  my  own, 
anything  Davitt  says  'No'  to,  I  don't  persist  in. 

"Now,  I  want  to  say  a  word  as  to  my  ideas  as  to  peace.  I  am 
a  peace  man;  by  that  I  mean  I  heartily  long  for  peace  as  a  condi 
tion  of  growth.  I  think  we've  come  to  a  day  when  we  ought  to  be 
able  to  adjust  human  affairs  amicably,  and  I  think  within  a  country 
violent  measures  should  never  be  resorted  to — let  the  people  work  it 
out  for  themselves;  but  in  international  affairs  I  hold  war  as  a  last 
resort,  as  something  which  must  be  entered  into,  if  justice  cannot 
in  any  other  way  be  had,  and  I  hold  that  war  upon  these  grounds 
is  in  the  best  interests  of  the  whole  world,  as  well  as  in  those  of  the 
oppressed  country  itself.  I  consider  Ireland  to  be  as  distinct  a  coun 
try  from  England  as  France  is  of  the  United  States;  and  from  all  I 
know  of  the  histories  of  England  and  Ireland  I  firmly  believe  that 


336  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

it  has  been  in  the  heart  of  England,  certainly  in  the  hearts  of  many 
of  her  political  leaders,  to  exterminate  the  Irish,  and  people  Ireland 
with  the  English.  Tens  of  thousands  of  the  best  of  the  Irish  race 
share  this  conviction  with  me;  and,  whether  we  are  regarded  as  right 
or  wrong  in  this  view,  it  will  serve  to  explain  the  deep  determination 
which  inspires  the  Irish  cause  to-day.  I  will  tell  you  something  which 
will  surprise  you — I  don't  know  a  single  Irishman  who  does  not 
believe  in  dynamite_,  if  nothing  else  will  do,  not  one.  We  have 
•shown  that  we  want  to  get  justice  by  less  terrible  methods — no  fair 
mind  can  deny  this — but  we  have  made  up  our  minds  fully  to  Ire 
land's  independence  at  any  cost.  I  tried  to  forestall  the  need  of  a 
dynamite  policy  by  spreading  the  right  ideas  in  Ireland.  I  ex 
plained  the  ins  and  outs  of  the  tenant  farmer  plan  and  the  Land  League 
system  in  the  columns  of  the  Irish  World  and  sent  it  all  over  Ireland. 
I  wanted  them  to  know  what  they  wanted  and  how  to  ask  for  it. 
Straightway  England,  so  proudly  boastful  of  her  own  independence 
and  of  the  morality  of  her  international  code,  proscribed  the  Irish 
World,  threw  Davitt  in  prison,  and  even  locked  up  Henry  George! 

"We  hear  a  great  deal  about  the  outrageous  brutality  of  the 
dynamite  policy,  about  the  innocent  women  and  children  who  must 
fall  victims.  Now,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  those  who  have  planned  and 
executed  dynamite  schemes  have  taken  the  greatest  pains,  at  much 
personal  risk,  in  order  to  time  explosions  so  that  innocent  lives  might 
be  spared.  But  apart  from  this  I  fail  to  see  that  dynamite  war  is 
any  more  regardless  of  the  sacrifice  of  blameless  life  than  war  usually 
is;  contending  armies  do  all  in  their  power  to  mutually  annihilate  and 
devastate,  and  their  respective  governments  call  in  science  and  wealth 
to  perfect  the  merciless  enginery  for  this  purpose.  An  oppressed 
people  must  resort  to  the  most  effective  means  within  its  power,  and 
the  responsibility  lies  with  a  strong  oppressing  foe  who  forces  them 
to  this  terrible  reprisal. 

"I  wanted  to  visit  Ireland  this  year,  and  had  planned  to  go;  for, 
although  born  there,  I  recollect  her  only  as  Miranda  recollected  when 
she  answered  Prospero,  '  Tis  far  off,  and  rather  like  a  dream  than 
an  assurance  that  my  remembrance  warrants.'  I  wanted  to  go  there 
and  look  around  me  quietly,  but  friends  warned  me  that  my  presence 
would  be  looked  upon  as  having  some  political  significance  and  be 
disturbing,  so  I  must  wait  to  look  up  my  birthplace  at  a  more  fitting 
time." 

Mr.  Ford  is  blessed  with  a  large,  industrious  family  of  ten — seven 
.sons  and  three  daughters.  Robert  Emmet  and  Austin  are  both  con 
nected  with  the  New  York  Freeman's  Journal,  and  are  prominent  in 
the  Knights  of  Columbus  and  other  Catholic  organizations.  Pat 
rick,  Jr.,  has  been  associated  in  business  with  his  father  for  ten 
years,  and  is  managing  .  editor  of  the  Irish  World.  Edward  and 
Thomas  are  also  with  the  paper,  while  James,  Paul  and  Frank  are 
attending  Villa  Nova  College. 

Misses  Mary  and  Ellen  assist  their  father  in  his  literary  work,  and 
Odele  is  still  at  school. 

It  was  one  of  Mr.  Ford's  saddest  experiences  in  life  to  lose  the 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  337 

idol  of  his  heart,  the  mother  of  his  children,  to  whom  they  owe  much 
of  the  success  which  has  blessed  them,  which  is  but  the  fruit  of  her 
unceasing  labor  in  their  behalf. 

PATRICK  DONAHOE. 

Founder    and    Proprietor    of   the    Pilot— His    Services    to    His    Faith 

and  Race. 

Mr.  Patrick  Donahoe's  restoration  in  1891  to  the  ownership 
of  The  Pilot,  which  he  founded  and  for  forty  years  controlled,  but 
which  passed  out  of  his  hands  nearly  seventeen  years  ago,  is  an 
event  without  precedent,  we  believe,  in  the  history  of  journalism. 
Many  men  have  founded  newspapers,  brought  them  to  success, 
sold  them  to  advantage  and  retired  from  journalistic  life,  or  engaged 
in  other  enterprises.  Others,  like  Mr.  Donahoe,  have  been  forced 
out  of  journalism  by  financial  disaster.  But  none,  so  far  as  we 
know,  except  Mr.  Donahoe,  having  sold  or  lost  his  newspaper,  has 
ever  returned  to  the  control  of  it. 

The  Pilot  passed  from  Mr.  Donahoe's  hands  in  1876,  under 
peculiarly  sad  circumstances.  It  was  the  culmination  of  a  series  of 
disasters,  beginning  with  his  heavy  losses  in  the  great  fire  of  No 
vember,  1872.  He  found  himself  in  April,  1876,  with  nothing  left 
out  of  his  vast  business,  newspaper,  book  publishing,  foreign  ex 
change,  etc.,  of  which  he  was  once  the  head,  except  his  passenger 
and  foreign  exchange  agency.  And  he  was  already  sixty-three  years 
of  age. 

The  career  of  the  man  who  at  this  advanced  age  could  begin 
the  world  again,  build  up  a  good  business  and  amass  the  where 
withal  to  repurchase,  when  opportunity  afforded,  the  journal  he  had 
founded,  is  surely  worth  telling. 

Patrick  Donahoe  was  born  in  Munnery,  the  parish  of  Kilmore, 
County  Cavan,  Ireland,  March  17,  1815.  He  came  to  Boston  in  1825, 
which  his  father  had  previously  visited.  He  went  to  school  for  a  few 
years,  and,  while  still  a  lad  in  his  teens,  got  employment  in  the  office 
of  the  Columbian  Sentinel.  Here  he  became  an  expert  typesetter 
and  acquired  a  general  knowledge  of  journalism. 

He  set  his  heart  on  founding,  in  Boston,  a  paper  for  the  Catho 
lics  of  the  United  States.  This  was  apparently  the  most  impracticable 
of  schemes,  so  great  was  the  prejudice  in  old-time  Boston  against 
Catholics. 

Bishop  Fenwick  broke  the  ice,  however,  by  the  establishment, 
in  1832,  of  a  little  paper,  to  which  he  gave  the  daring  name  of  "The 
Jesuit."  It  was  not  a  financial  success,  and,  after  a  few  years'  strug 
gling  existence,  was  about  to  be  discontinued,  when  Mr.  Donahoe 
and  Mr.  Devereux  came  forward  and  bought  it.  They  changed  the 
name  to  the  Literary  and  Catholic  Sentinel,  but  it  fared  no  better 
than  its  predecessor,  and  had  to  be  abandoned. 

In  the  height  of  O'Connell's  battle  for  repeal  in  Ireland,  at  a 
time  of  great  excitement,  Mr.  Donahoe,  who  soon  became  sole  pro 
prietor  of  the  Sentinel— his  associate  retiring  from  a  venture  which 


338 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 


r 


PATRICK    DONAHOE. 
Founder  and  Proprietor  of  the  Pilot. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  339 

he  feared  would  never  prove  profitable — re-named  the  paper  after 
O'Connell's  own  organ,  The  Pilot.  The  whole  working  force  of 
the  office  then  consisted  of  the  proprietor,  two  female  compositors  and 
an  office  boy,  and  the  subscription  list  contained  about  three  hundred 
names.  The  earlier  editors  in  Mr.  Donahoe's  employ  were  George 
Pepper,  who,  the  veteran  publisher  says,  was  a  writer  of  greater  in 
tensity  than  prudence;  D'Arcy  McGee,  who  came  to  the  paper  first 
as  a  solicitor  and  correspondent,  subsequently  became  its  leading 
editorial  writer,  and  left  it  to  join  the  staff  of  the  Dublin  Freeman's 
Journal,  whose  owner,  Dr.  Gray,  had  been  impressed  by  the  virility 
of  his  work;  and  Walter  James  Walsh,  who  was  talented  but  erratic. 
Later  on,  the  Rev.  John  T.  Roddan,  a  suburban  pastor,  edited  the 
paper  for  a  while,  as  did  the  learned  Father  Finotti  -after  him,  and 
other  clergymen  were  occasional  contributors  to  its  columns. 

The  Pilot  for  a  long  time  had  the  field  almost  to  itself.  It  be 
came  a  household  word  in  the  Irish  Catholic  homes  of  the  land,  and 
was  eagerly  looked  for,  from  week  to  week,  by  the  poor  immigrants, 
homesick  for  the  news  of  the  old  land,  which  they  were  sure  to  find 
abundantly  in  its  columns.  For  many  years,  too,  it  did  effective 
missionary  work,  being  almost  the  only  medium  of  Catholic  news  and 
religious  instruction  in  the  hundreds  of  new  settlements  where  the 
visits  of  priests  were  necessarily  infrequent. 

The  "Old  Subscriber,"  very  numerous  on  The  Pilot  books, 
and  who  holds  a  double  handful  of  receipts,  dating  back  to  the  early 
4o's,  tells  many  a  pathetic  story  of  The  Pilot's  travels  in  pioneer 
days  among  the  scattered  farmhouses  of  the  great  Western  clear 
ances,  and  of  the  hearty  reception  it  met  with  every  week  in  the 
little  frontier  town  and  the  mining  camp.  In  the  latest  volume  of 
Annals  of  the  Sisters  of  Mercy,  in  sketch  of  the  San  Francisco  foun 
dations  in  1854,  we  find  this  reference  to  The  Pilot:  "Steamers  came 
once  a  month;  later,  twice  a  month.  No  matter  what  hour  of  the 
night  the  steamer  arrived,  the  newsboys  went  their  rounds,  shouting 
out  in  full  capitals:  'Arrival  of  the  Northern  Star  (or  any  other 
steamer)!'  'Here's  your  Boston  Pilot!  New  Orleans  Picayune!  New 
York  Herald!'" 

Meantime  the  founder  of  The  Pilot  was  rapidly  amassing  a  for 
tune,  and  had  become  the  foremost  man  of  his  race  in  New  England. 
In  addition  to  his  newspaper,  he  established  a  large  publishing  house, 
whence  the  works  of  many  notable  Irish  and  Irish-American  authors 
were  issued.  A  bookstore  and  a  great  emporium  of  church  furniture, 
and  a  large  passage  and  exchange  agency  were  subsequently  added. 

Mr.  Donahoe  was  a  very  public-spirited  and  patriotic  citizen.  No 
movement  for  the  benefit  of  Boston  or  of  America  lacked  his  sym 
pathy  and  generous  help.  When  the  Civil  War  broke  out,  he  ac 
tively  interested  himself  in  the  organization  of  the  Irish  regiments. 
He  was  treasurer  of  the  fund  for  the  equipment  of  the  Irish  Ninth, 
and  when  the  regiment  was  departing  for  the  field  he  presented 
Colonel  Cass  with  $1,000  in  gold  for  distribution  among  the  men. 
He  assisted  in  the  formation  of  the  Twenty-eighth  Massachusetts 


340  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

Regiment,  and  generously  aided  the  soldiers  at  Camp  Cameron.  Cam 
bridge,  during  the  early  days  of  the  war. 

An  earnest  Catholic,  he  was  most  generous  to  Catholic  charities. 

He  aided  the  benevolent  Father  Raskins,  for  instance,  to  estab 
lish  the  House  of  the  Angel  Guardian,  which  has  done,  and  is  still 
doing,  so  much  good  for  the  Catholic  orphans  of  Boston.  The  Home 
for  Destitute  Catholic  Children,  which  is  not  infrequently  called 
Donahoe's  Home,  and  which  annually  receives  hundreds  of  Catholic 
waifs,  would  probably  never  have  been  built  but  for  his  generous 
benefactions.  It  was  in  behalf  of  this  home  that  Mr.  Donahoe 
brought  the  lamented  Father  Tom  Burke  to  Boston  to  speak  (for 
the  first  time  in  New  England)  in  the  Coliseum;  and  in  order  to 
secure  the  use -of  the  building,  wherein  the  eloquent  Dominican  ad 
dressed  an  audience  approximating  40,000  persons,  Mr.  Donahoe 
subscribed  $1,000.  When  public  opinion  opposed  the  building  of 
Boston  College  on  the  old  jail  lands,  in  the  center  of  the  city,  which 
site  that  wonderful  old  Jesuit,  the  Rev.  John  McElroy,  had  in  some 
manner  managed  to  secure,  Mr.  Donahoe  brought  Father  McElroy 
and  Mayor  Rice  together,  and  the  result  was  the  surrender  of  the 
jail  lands  and  the  obtaining  of  the  present  location  of  the  college,  a 
far  more  desirable  one  than  the  first  contemplated  site. 

Scarcely  a  church  in  New  England  was  built  in  his  time  without 
some  gift  from  him;  nor  was  any  good  cause  in  America  or  Ireland 
ever  refused  his  assistance.  The  American  College  at  Rome,  and  the 
Seminary  at  Mill  Hill,  England,  for  the  training  of  priests  for  the 
colored  missions,  were  among  the  foreign  institutions  he  delighted 
to  help,  the  former  to  the  extent  of  $5,000. 

Mr.  Donahoe  had  many  plans  for  the  intellectual  advancement  of 
his  people,  among  them  the  opening  of  a  picture  gallery  filled  with 
the  best  that  the  great  art  centers  of  Europe  could  give.  He  had 
already  a  notable  collection  of  valuable  pictures  made  to  this  end 
when  his  financial  troubles  began. 

Mr.  Donahoe  has  been  twice  married.  Of  the  offspring  of  his 
first  marriage,  which  took  place  in  1836,  all  are  dead.  Of  the  second, 
in  1853,  are  three  sons  and  a  daughter.  Two,  Patrick  M.,  treasurer 
and  manager  of  The  Pilot  Company,  and  Jos.  V.,  representing  his 
vast  steamship  and  banking  business;  the  other.  Mr.  J.  Frank  Dona 
hoe,  is  an  organist  of  prominence  in  Boston's  musical  circles. 

In  1872  Patrick  Donahoe  was,  without  doubt,  the  richest  and 
most  influential  Catholic  in  New  England,  and  in  the  front  rank, 
both  in  means  and  influence,  among  the  Catholics  of  America. 

The  granite  block  on  Franklin  street,  in  which  The  Pilot  offices, 
publishing  house,  etc.,  were  located,  was  one  of  the  handsomest 
buildings  in  Boston.  He  had  a  fine  private  residence  on  Boylston 
street,  the  scene  of  constant  lavish  hospitality.  He  had  other  valu 
able  property,  and  from  all  sources  a  splendid  income. 

The  memorable  fire  of  1872  came,  destroying  his  splendid  build 
ings,  stereotype  plates,  book  stock  and  other  property  to  the  amount 
of  $350,000.  He  at  once  resumed  business  on  Washington  street,  but 
was  burned  put  again  in  May,  1873.  Still  full  of  courage,  he  built 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  341 

again,  this  time  on  Boylston  street,  moved  into  the  new  structure  and 
was  burned  out  a  third  time.  The  insurance  companies  had  nearly 
all  collapsed  in  the  great  fire,  so  the  usual  help  in  rising  from  such 
losses  as  his  was  not  to  be  had.  He  had  indorsed  heavily  for  friends. 
Through  this  dangerous  form  of  generosity  he  lost  a  sum  total  of 
$250,000. 

These  heavy  losses  proved  too  much  for  the  veteran  editor,  and 
he  was  obliged,  in  1876,  to  make  an  assignment.  Mr.  Donahoe  relin 
quished  everything  he  possessed  in  favor  of  his  creditors.  The  Pilot 
passed  into  the  hands  of  the  Archbishop  of  Boston  and  John  Boyle 
O'Reilly,  the  latter  being  a  quarter  owner. 

Meantime  the  veteran  journalist,  amid  constant  reminders  of 
his  old-time  affluence,  was  beginning  his  business  life  anew.  He 
resumed  his  foreign  exchange  and  passenger  agency  in  Boylston 
street,  and  in  1878  he  established  a  monthly  magazine/  which,  under 
the  name  of  Donahoe's  Magazine,,  has  attained  wide  circulation  and 
popularity,  and  which  he  has  since  disposed  of.  With  characteristic 
courage  he  personally  established  its  circulation,  going  over  the 
same  ground  that  he  traversed  in  his  young  manhood  for  The  Pilot 
many  years  before.  He  endured  his  altered  fortunes  manfully.  No 
one  ever  saw  an  abatement  in  his  cheerfulness  arid  energy.  His 
attention  to  his  duties,  his  interest  in  all  Catholic  matters,  his  confi 
dence  in  God,  and  his  hopeful  views  of  life  were  increased. 

On  the  death  of  Mr.  John  Boyle  O'Reilly,  Archbishop  Williams 
became  sole  proprietor  of  The  Pilot,  and  desiring  that  its  founder 
should  again  become  proprietor,  sold  it  to  Mr.  Donahoe  in  January 
of  1891. 

In  August,  1891,  the  attention  of  the  Holy  Father  was  drawn  to 
the  distinguished  services  of  the  veteran  founder  of  The  Pilot,  and 
His  Holiness  sent,  through  The  Pilot's  Rome  correspondent,  Mr. 
Connellan,  a  special  blessing  to  Mr.  Donahoe  and  his  family. 

On  March  17,  of  the  present  year,  Mr.  Donahoe  was  specially 
honored  by  the  University  of  Notre  Dame.  That  famous  seat  of 
learning  each  year  selects  some  distinguished  Catholic  layman,  on 
whom  to  confer  what  is  known  as  the  Laetare  medal.  Those  only 
are  honored  who  have  distinguished  themselves  in  the  cause  of  re 
ligion  and  country.  Who  is  more  worthy  of  such  an  honor  than  the 
venerable  editor  of  The  Pilot,  whose  long  and  useful  life  has  been 
given  up  to  the  cause  of  faith  and  race? 

Old  Pilot  readers  will  be  glad  to  learn  that  Mr.  Donahoe,  though 
now  approaching  his  seventy-ninth  year,  is  still  a  man  of  remarkable 
mental  and  physical  vitality.  He  still  enters  his  counting-room  at 
eight  in  the  morning,  remains  until  six  in  the  afternoon,  and 
takes  as  lively  an  interest  in  the  expansion  of  The  Pilot's  circulation 
as  he  ever  did.  Modest  and  unassuming,  and  deeply  religious,  he 
regards  the  return  of  The  Pilot  as  a  special  providence  of  God,  whilst 
the  almost  world-wide  congratulations  which  have  been  showered 
on  him  by  prelates,  priests  and  laymen,  since  his  return  to  his  former 
place  of  honor,  will  render  the  balance  c^  his  days  both  proud  and 
happy.  . 


842  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

The  Pilot,  edited  by  Patrick  Donahoe,  was  the  Boston  Pilot  in 
the  fifties,  when  I  was  lifted  onto  the  counter  of  my  father's  store  at 
Rouse's  Point,  on  Lake  Champlain,  and  read  aloud  from  it  Dr. 
Cahill's  letters  to  Lord  Palmerston  and  Lord  John  Russell,  the 
poems  on  "No  Irish  Need  Apply"  and  other  leading  articles.  It 
was  then,  and  is  yet,  one  of  the  ablest  Irish  Catholic  papers  in 
America,  and  as  a  friend  and  educator  of  the  Irish  it  has  done  noble 
work.  It  was  a  source  of  great  pleasure  to  me  to  find  in  the  Boston 
delegation  at  the  unveiling  of  Shields'  statue,  Patrick  Donahoe,  the 
venerable  editor  and  proprietor  of  The  Pilot,  with  associate  editors, 
and  D.  P.  Toomey,  editor  of  Donahoe's  Magazine,  Mayor  Matthews, 
General  Francis  A.  Walker,  Hon.  J.  L.  Long,  Hon.  Joseph  H. 
Octid,  Rev.  Thomas  J.  Scully,  J.  J.  Roche,  Hon.  J.  B.  Martin,  ex-Gov, 
Russell,  Major  J.  W.  Hart,  Mr.  Walter  H.  French,  and  others. 


CHAPTER     XXVI. 


Illinois  Legislature  Instructs  Its  Senators  to  Vote  for  the  Purchase 
of  Shields'  Swords — Nine  Thousand  Dollars  Appropriated  for 
Shields'  Statue — Who  Obtained  It — The  Commissioners — 
Unveiling  of  Statue  at  Washington,  D.  C,  December  6,  1893— 
Speeches  of  Hon.  William  H.  Condon,  Governor  Altgeld,  John 
C.  Tarnsey,  M.  C.,  and  Senator  Turpie — Poem,  "Sword  of  Cerro 
Gordo"— Over  Twenty-nine  Millions  Represented  at  the  Cere 
mony. 


House  of  Representatives,  U.  S., 

Washington,  D.  C.,  Feb.  11,  1887. 
WILLIAM  H.  CONDON,   Esq. 

My  Dear  Sir: — Yours  of  the  6th,  in  relation  to  General  Shields' 
swords,  etc.,  received.  I  am  very  glad  to  receive  your  offer  of 
assistance.  It  will  be  difficult  to  reach  the  bill  on  the  calendar  this 
session,  unless  we  have  some  special  favor  from  the  speaker,  which 
he  has  not  so  far  shown.  I  enclose  you  to-day  all  the  copies  of 
the  bill  which  I  could  obtain.  Any  help  you  can  give  through 
land  leagues,  or  otherwise,  in  attracting  public  attention  to  the  mat 
ter,  will  be  highly  appreciated.  Under  the  law  each  state  is  entitled 
to  two  statues  in  statuary  hall.  Missouri  has  none.  Have  to-day 
written  to  a  friend  in  the  Missouri  Senate,  Hon.  G.  W.  Labree,  from 
my  town,  Carrollton,  Missouri,  which  was  also  the  home  of  General 
Shields,  and  where  his  family  now  resides,  urging  him  to  take- action 
in  the  matter.  Write  to  him.  Very  truly  yours, 

J.  B.  HALE. 

P.  S. — The  average  cost  of  these  statues  put  up  is  about  $15,000. 

J.  B.  H. 

Soon  after  receiving  Congressman  Hale's  letter  in  re 
gard  to  his  bill  for  the  sale  of  General  Shields'  swords,  I 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  343 

drew  the  following  joint  resolution,  which  was  introduced 
in  the  House  of  Representatives  at  Springfield,  Illinois,  by 
Hon.  James  O'Connor,  an  able  and  energetic  blind  repre 
sentative,  who  secured  the  passage  of  the  resolution  and 
concurrence  therein  by  the  Senate : 

PURCHASE   OF   THE    SWORDS    OF    JAMES    SHIELDS. 

Whereas,  The  state  of  Illinois  and  the  state  of  South 
Carolina,  after  the  war  with  Mexico,  each  presented  to 
the  late  General  James  Shields  a  sword,  in  consideration 


PRESENT    CAPITOL    OF    ILLINOIS. 


of  gallant  and  meritorious  services  rendered  by  him  in 
said  war ;  and 

Whereas,  He  has  left  surviving  him  a  widow  and  three 
minor  children,  with  but  limited  means  of  support,  and 
said  swords,  though  costly  and  valuable,  cannot  be  divided 
and  apportioned  between  said  children,  and  their  value  is 
needed  for  the  education  and  support  of  said  children ;  and 

Whereas,  A  bill  has  been  introduced  in  Congress  to 
authorize  the  Secretary  of  War  to  purchase  of  the  widow 
and  children  of  the  late  General  James  Shields  said  swords, 
at  their  actual  cost  and  value,  not  to  exceed  the  sum  of  ten 
thousand  dollars; 

Resolved,  by  the  House  of  Representatives,  the  Sen 
ate  concurring  herein,  That  our  Senators  in  Congress  be 
instructed,  and  our  Representatives  be  requested,  to  use 
their  best  endeavors  to  secure  the  passage  of  said  bill. 


344  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

After  a  very  interesting  consideration  of  the  bill  by 
both  Houses  of  Congress,  during  which  eloquent  tributes 
were  paid  General  Shields,  the  Secretary  of  War  was 
authorized  to  purchase  his  swords.  wHch  he  did,  in  Janu 
ary,  1890,  for  $10,000. 

Mr.  O'Connor,  Miss  Katharine  T.  Shields,  the  General's  daughter, 
and  one  of  my  sisters  aided  me  in  obtaining  $9,000  for  Shields'  statue. 
Governor  Altgeld  appointed  Carter  H.  Harrison,  Gustavus  Koerner, 
a  former  law  partner  of  General  Shields,  Michael  Cudahy,  a  capitalist, 
Edward  Baggott,  a  prominent  merchant,  and  myself,  as  trustees. 
Carter  H.  Harrison  was  killed  by  a  lunatic  a  short  time  before  the 
unveiling,  and  the  other  trustees,  having  been  prevented  from  attend 
ing,  I,  as  secretary  of  the  Board  of  Trustees,  acted  for  it  at  Wash 
ington. 

More  than  a  year  before  the  bill  passed  I  paid  the  modeler  and 
designer  of  it  $2,200  for  preparing  the  plaster  cast  of  it,  and  when  it 
had  been  approved  by  Mrs.  Shields,  he  had  it  cast  and  sold  it  to  the 
state.  I  was  so  fortunate  as  to  recover  the  money  I  had  advanced 
him,  and  was  able  to  induce  the  gentlemen  who  furnished  the  granite 
base  to  prevail  upon  the  modeler  to  complete  the  work. 
SPEECHES  ON  ACCEPTANCE  OF  STATUE  IN  HOUSE 
AND  SENATE. 

On  December  6,  1893,  Mr.  Springer,  in  the  House  of  Represent 
atives,  said  in  part: 

The  State  of  Illinois,  which  gave  to  the  service  of  our  country  such 
illustrious  statesmen  and  heroes  as  Lincoln,  Douglas,  Grant  and  Shields, 
was  not  wanting  in  citizens  upon  whom  could  be  justly  conferred  the 
honor  of  erecting  statues  to  their  memory  in  Statuary  Hall.  A  brief 
reference  to  the  life,  character  and  services  of  General  Shields  will  prove 
conclusively  that  in  honoring  his  memory  by  placing  his  statue  in  Statu 
ary  Hall  at  the  Capital  of  his  adopted  country,  the  State  of  Illinois 
made  no  mistake. 

In  1836,  before  he  was  naturalized,  he  was  elected  to  the  Legislature 
of  Illinois.  In  1848  he  was  elected  United  States  Senator  from  Illinois, 
and  was  declared  ineligible  because  he  had  not  been  nine  years  in  the 
state.  A  special  session  of  the  Illinois  Legislature  was  called.  Shields 
then  having  been  nine  years  in  the  State  was  triumphantly  elected. 
He  had  twice  in  one  year  been  elected  Senator  and  took  his  seat  in 
December,  1849.  During  the  debate  in  Congress  on  his  eligibility,  Gen 
eral  Shields  stated  that  he  would  appeal  to  the  State  of  Illinois  for  a 
vindication,  and  asserted  if  that  state  did  not  respond  to  his  appeal,  that 
it  was  his  intention,  though  he  had  endeavored  to  prove  his  fidelity  to 
his  country,  never  to  offer  himself  again  for  office  in  the  United  States. 
General  Shields  was  a  military  genius.  On  January  10,  1862,  in  a  letter 
to  General  McClellan,  commander-in-chief  of  the  army,  he  outlined  the 
military  operations  which  he  deemed  necessary  for  the  suppression  of 
the  rebellion.  Secretary  Seward,  in  an  official  communication,  Jan.  14, 
1862,  communicated  it  to  the  Secretary  of  War,  inviting  his  attention 
thereto.  This  letter  is  published  in  the  Records  of  the  War  of  the 
Rebellion,  Series  i,  Volume  5,  pages  701  to  703.  It  is  one  of  the 
most  important  papers  relating  to  the  conduct  of  the  war,  and  stamps 
its  author  as  one  of  the  ablest  generals  which  the  war  produced.  In 
brief,  his  recommendations  were  to  the  effect  that  Richmond  and  Mem- 


LIFE     OF    GEN.    SHIELDS. 


345 


SHIELDS  STATUE  UNVEILED  AT  WASHINGTON,  D.  C.,  DECEMBER  6,  A.  D.  1893. 

The  Bronze  Statue  is  Eight  Feet  Six  Inches  in  Height,  and  Granite  Base  Four  Feet 
Ten  Inches.  The  Coat  of  Arms  of  the  States  He  Represented  in  the  Senate  are  Shown 
on  Three  Sides  of  the  Base. 


346  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

phis  were  to  be  the  objective  points  of  the  campaign,  and  that  all  efforts 
should  be  directed  toward  their  capture  and  occupation  by  the  Union 
forces.  He  pointed  out  minutely  the  plan  of  a  campaign  which  should 
be  carried  on  against  Richmond,  and  urged  the  importance  of  exercising 
"such  caution  and  steadiness  as  to  preclude  the  possibility  of  any  cas 
ualty,  however  insignificant,  so  that  the  whole  army  should  arrive  be 
fore  that  place  in  heart  and  spirit."  He  states  that  General  McClellan 
agreed  fully  with  him  in  reference  to  the  conduct  of  the  war.  There  is 
no  doubt  that  President  Lincoln  and  General  McClellan  had  great  con 
fidence  in  the  military  wisdom  and  skill  of  General  Shields,  and  that 
they  esteemed  his  advice  very  highly.  His  patriotism  was  unbounded 
by  sectional  lines,  and  his  devotion  to  his  adopted  country  was  as  great 
as  ever  exhibited  by  one  to  the  manor  born.  He  loved  liberty  and 
believed  in  the  equality  of  all  men  before  the  law.  The  state  of  Illinois 
has  worthily  bestowed  the  great  honor  upon  his  memory  by  causing 
an  heroic  "statue  in  bronze  to  be  erected  and  placed  in  Statuary  Hall. 
There  it  will  remain  as  long  as  time  will  endure  to  testify  to  the  appre 
ciation  in  which  he  was  held  by  the  state  which  he  so  ably  served,  and 
to  commenorate  his  patriotism,  self-sacrifice  and  devotion  to  the  wel 
fare  of  his  adopted  country. 

Mr.  Bland  said  in  part  that  when  one-half  of  the  citizens  of 
Missouri  were  disfranchised,  General  Shields  took  up  their  cause 
and  advocated  their  liberty.  He,  as  candidate  for  Congress,  lent  charm 
and  influence  to  the  canvass.  He  was  elected,  but  the  whole  poll  of 
one  county  was  thrown  out  and  his  competitor  was  given  the  certi 
ficate  of  election.  All  of  mortality  that  remains  of  this  great  man 
sleeps  in  the  bosom  of  my  state.  It  is  but  meet  and  proper  that  the 
people  of  the  three  great  states  that  honored  General  Shields  with  a 
seat  in  the  councils  of  the  nation  may  ask  to  be  permitted  to  take  a 
particular  part  in  the  effort  of  the  whole  people  to  commemorate  the 
memory  and  the  character  of  this  great  man. 

General  Black  of  Illinois  in  part  said:  "The  State  of  Illinois  has 
chosen  Shields  as  its  man  for  a  reason  that  reaches  to  the  philosophies 
of  human  life.  It  is  because  his  character  represented  more  fully  the 
catholicity  of  American  citizenship  than  that  of  any  other  man  who 
had  ever  appeared  in  the  annals  of  the  republic.  Born  in  a  kingdom 
as  he  was,  this  man  crossed  the  flaming  gulf  which  separates  despotism 
from  liberty  upon  the  bridge  formed  by  the  declaration  of  the  eternal 
rights  of  men.  Coming  among  us  voluntarily,  he  assumed  all  the 
burdens  of  citizenship,  peaceful  in  time  of  peace,  baring  his  breast 
among  the  foremost  when  the  requirements  of  the  country  made 
sacrifice  of  life  possible,  he  did  all  his  work  well  and  left  an  _honored 
name,  and  Illinois  presents  him,  soldier,  citizen,  Senator  and  jurist,  as 
a  representative  of  American  citizenship." 

Mr.  Hall  of  Minnesota  said  in  part :  "We  honored  him  and  honored 
ourselves  by  conferring  on  him  the  first  Senatorial  commission  which  bore 
the  great  seal-of  our  newborn  state.  For  ten  months  only  he  served  us  in 
this  capacity.  He  left  us  for  a  new  home  on  the  Pacific  Coast.  There 
he  heard  the  echo  of  the  first  gun  which  opened  upon  Sumter.  It 
needed  no  proclamation  to  summon  James  Shields  to  the  service  of 
his  adopted  country.  A  soldier  of  ability -and  of  undoubted  courage, 
he  played  his  part  in  the  great  national  tragedy  with  conspicuous 
fidelity  and  success.  Among  the  names  of  her  adopted  sons,  whom 
America  delights  to  honor  for  their  heroism  and  devotion,  none  shines 
with  greater  luster  than  that  of  this  stalwart  Irishman,  James  Shields. 
Facing  Ethan  Allen,  these  sturdy  veterans  stand,  fine  specimens  both 
of  the  citizen  soldiery  of  two  war  epochs,  the  one  native,  the  other 
foreign  born,  both  pre-eminently  and  altogether  American,  steadfast 
and  reliable;  typical  both  of  a  pioneer  race  to  whose  vigorous  man 
hood  and  resistless  activity  the  nation  owes  much  of  its  strength  and 
most  of  its  development. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  347 

"James  Shields  and  Ethan  Allen!  It  is  with  such  rugged  boulders 
as  these  that  the  foundations  of  empires  are  laid.  He  does  not  read 
history  well  who  fails  to  recognize  the  influence  and  the  necessity  of 
such  characters  as  these  in  the  progress  of  the  nations  and  the  on 
ward  march  of  civilization." 

General  Gates  said  in  part:  "As  one  of  the  soldiers  of  the  late 
Confederacy  who  met  General  Shields  upon  the  battlefield,  I  desire 
to  say  that  on  the  first  day  of  June,  1862,  I  saw  the  army  commanded 
by  General  Shields  in  the  distance  on  the  south  side  of  the  Shenandoah 
River,  advancing  for  the  purpose  of  cutting  off  the  advance  of  Stone 
wall  Jackson  up  the  valley.  There  were  forced  marches  and  engage 
ments  with  Fremont  for  a  week,  during  which  General  Shields'  forces 
on  the  east  side  of  the  Shenandoah  endeavored  to  effect  a  crossing  to 
intercept  Jackson.  At  Staunton  Jackson  abandoned  the  pike,  taking 
a  dim  little  road  to  Port  Republic  in  the  forks  of  the  Shenandoah 
River,  several  miles  from  that  point.  From  that  point  there  was  no 
activity  until  the  morning  of  the  8th  of  June,  when  Fremont  ad 
vanced  and  the  battle  of  Port  Republic  took  place,  in  which  the 
.  Confederate  force  consisted  mainly  of  Ewell's  Division  and  a  part 
of  the  old  division  of  Jackson. 

"During  this  time  Shields  had  made  a  circuit  of  the  valley  up  the 
river,  so  as  to  get  before  us,  and  he  had  a  long  march  to  make  to 
reach  Port  Republic.  But  he  had  pressed  on  until  he  had  approached 
that  village,  and  had  he  crossed  his  force  into  the  forks  of  the  two 
rivers  and  captured  the  bridge,  THERE  WAS  NO  ESCAPE  FOR 
JACKSON.  He  would  have  had  an  army  in  his  rear  and  one  in  his 
front,  and  near  the  crossing  of  the  river,  WITH  NO  ROAD  OR 
BRIDGE  BY  WHICH  TO  ESCAPE,  and  it  would  probably  have 
PROVED  HIS  DESTRUCTION. 

"He  went  personally  with  a  part  of  his  command,  and  before  any 
of  them  had  crossed  the  river  he  himself  rode  into  Port  Republic,  a 
small  village,  and  while  he  was  reconnoitering  the  village,  a  Federal 
Captain,  commanding  a  battery,  HAD  PLACED  HIS  GUNS  AT 
THE  FOOT  OF  THE  BRIDGE.  He  had  crossed  over  the  south 
fork  and  placed  his  guns  so  as  to  command  the  bridge  completely. 
Jackson  rode  down  and  ordered  him  away,  and  the  Federal  officer, 
mistaking  him  for  one  of  his  own  commanders  for  the  time,  started  to 
obey,  when  Jackson,  on  his  charger,  darted  like  an  eagle  across  the 
bridge,  and  was  fired  at  with  one  of  the  guns,  but,  fortunately  for 
him,  without  any  effect.  He  then  advanced  General  Talliaferro's  brig 
ade,  who  captured  the  bridge,  effecting  a  crossing,  and,  I  believe, 
captured  both  of  the  guns.  No  man  in  the  Federal  army  ever  com 
manded  better  or  fought  more  valiantly  than  General  Shields  did  at  the 
Battle  of  Port  Republic.  I  entertain  the  greatest  respect  for  the  man, 
for  his  ability  and  his  character.  He  was  a  patriot  and  a  noble  man. 
I  honor  him  and  his  memory  highly,  and  heartily  contribute  these  few 
words  upon  this  occasion." 

Senator  Cullom  introduced  a  resolution  of  thanks  to  the  State 
of  Illinois  for  presenting  the  Shields  statue,  and  said  in  part: 

That  General  Shields,  in  Mexico,  made  a  name  for  courage  and 
patriotism,  not  surpassed  by  any  other  soldier  on  any  bloody  field. 
Not  less  than  five  of  the  men  who  went  from  Illinois  to  the  Mexican 
War  afterward  became  distinguished  members  of  this  Senate:  General 
Shields,  General  Baker,  General  Richardson,  General  Logan  and 
General  Oglesby.  Bissell  became  first  member  of  the  House  of  Rep 
resentatives  and  next  Governor  of  Illinois.  Colonel  Thomas  L. 
Harris  and  Hon.  Lewis  W.  Ross  became  active  and  influential  mem 
bers  of  the  House  of  Representatives. 

I  have  been  told  that  General  Shields  received,  in  the  different 
wars  in  which  he  took  part,  in  defense  of  his  country,  not  less  than 


348  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

eleven  wounds.  In  the  high  office  of  Senator  from  Illinois  he  served 
the  state  faithfully  and  ably,  as  he  did  in  every  position  of  trust  and 
honor.  After  the  Civil  War  he  was  chairman  of  the  Wisconsin  State 
Democratic  Convention. 

The  simple  recital  of  the  wonderful  career  of  General  Shields 
seems  almost  like  a  dream  of  fancy,  a  romance  of  imagination.  No 
other  American  citizen,  native  or  naturalized,  has  ever  been  certified 
or  commissioned  as  a  member  of  this  Senate  by  three  different  great 
states. 

That  fact  carries  with  it  the  irresistible  conclusion  that  he  was 
no  ordinary  man.  It  is  proof  in  itself  that  he  possessed  qualities  of 
head  and  heart  that  drew  around  him  his  fellowmen  wherever  he 
went  or  in  whatever  he  was  engaged,  whether  in  field  or  forum. 
While  he  was  a  foreigner,  yet  no  American  citizen  has  ever  shown 
greater  affection  for  the  Union  and  the  flag;  neither  did  any  patriot 
show  more  willingness  to  spill  his  blood  for  human  liberty.  He 
was  a  friend  of  the  Union  soldier,  and  his  last  period  of  service  in  the 
Senate  was  marked  by  his  fervent  appeal  in  behalf  of  the  veterans 
of  the  Mexican  War.  He  felt  that  the  veterans  of  the  Mexican  War 
were  being  lost  sight  of,  and  in  behalf  of  his  comrades  of  that  war  he 
called  the  attention  of  the  Senate  to  the  services  of  the  army  in  secur 
ing  to  the  nation  the  command  of  the  Pacific  Slope  by  the  acquisition 
of  territory  on  our  western  border,  stretching  700  miles  north  and 
south,  and  900  miles  east  and  west. 

In  the  simplest  language  he  said:  "Give  us  a  little  of  that  we 
helped  to  secure  for  our  country;  give  us  a  small  pittance  to  help  us 
while  on  the  downward  path  of  life  in  our  old  days;  give  us  some 
thing  to  assist  us  in  our  last  days  when  we  are  marching  to  that  field 
from  which  no  warrior  has  ever  returned  victorious." 

He  was  not  pleading  for  himself;  he  was  receiving  a  pension  of 
$100  per  month.  The  brief  story  of  his  life  shows  General  Shields 
to  have  been  one  of  the  most  illustrious  men  of  our  country.  He 
\vas  a  hero,  patriot,  soldier  and  statesman.  He  believed  in  his 
adopted  country  and  was  ever  ready  to  fight  for  its  flag  in  war,  as 
he  always  served  it  faithfully  in  peace.  Fifteen  years  ago,  at  the 
great  reunion  of  veterans  of  five  wars,  among  others  of  note  was 
Shields,  the  adopted  citizen,  a  soldier  brave  as  the  bravest,  a  states 
man  honored  repeatedly  by  my  state,  wearing  a  wreath  of  honor 
conferred  by  three  great  commonwealths,  a  tribute  of  higher  value 
than  ever  crowned  a  Roman  Senator.  I  have  gazed  with  pleasure 
upon  the  memorial  statues  which  a  grateful  and  reverent  people  have 
erected  in  the  thronged  and  crowded  street  of  the  Irish  capitol,  City 
of  Dublin,  to  O'Connell  and  Grattan,  the  patriot  statesman  and  the 
great  orator;  may  I  hope  that  this  statue  in  this  Pantheon  of  America 
will  ever  remain  as  a  suitable  memorial  of  the  illustrious  soldier  and 
statesman.  Shields. 

Senator  Palmer  of  Illinois,  Davis  of  Minnesota  and  Vest  of  Mis 
souri  followed  Senator  Cullom,  echoine  every  sentiment  uttered  by 
him  in  favor  of  General  Shields,  and  adding  thereto  many  interesting 
incidents  in  his  glorious  career. 

UNVEILING    OF    STATUE    IN    STATUARY    HALL. 

On  December  6.  1893,  the  Emmet  Guards  and  a  band  of  music 
participated  in  the  Capitol  at  Washins-ton,  D.  C,  at  the  unveiling 
of  Shields'  statue.  Never  since  the  New  York  Seventh  Regiment 
bivouaced  there  during  the  Civil  War  has  the  echo  of  the  tramp  of 
armed  men  been  heard  in  it.  Every  inch  of  standing  room  was  filled 
by  congressmen,  clergymen,  presidents  of  colleges  and  others  of  note. 

Vice-president  Stevenson  nnd  Speaker  Crisp,  Governor  Altgeld 
and  staff,  General  Brady  of  Virginia,  Colonel  Wood,  of  the  Mexican 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  349 

War,  Senator  Turpie  of  Indiana,  Mayor  Mathews  of  Boston,  Hon. 
M.  H.  Dunnell  of  Minnesota,  Controller  Eckels,  Frank  H.  Jones, 
assistant  postmaster-general,  Secretaries  Wilke  and  Hamlin  of  the 
Treasury  Department,  Pension  Commissioner  Lochren,  Second  Con 
troller  Mansur,  Miss  Katharine  J.  Shields,  Charles  J.  Shields,  Daniel  J. 
Shields,  children  of  the  General,  Hon.  William  H.  Condon,  secretary 
of  the  Shields'  Statue  Commission,  and  others,  were  seated  on  an 
elevated  platform,  when  Colonel  Mansur  introduced  Mr.  Condon  as 
chairman,  who  delivered  the  following  address: 

HON.  WILLIAM  H.  CONDON'S  ADDRESS. 

Eighty-three  years  ago,  in  the  Emerald  Isle,  a  boy  was  born 
whose  marvelous  career  has  brought  together  this  magnificent  as 
semblage  of  the  wisdom,  worth  and  beauty  of  the  nation. 

Amid  the  ruined  towers  and  crumbled  fanes  of  his  native  land 
he  saw  but  poor  recompense  for  honest  endeavor  in  any  walk  of 
life,  since  even  his  faith  debarred  him  from  many  offices  or  exalted 
stations,  because  he  worshiped  God  according  to  the  dictates  of  his 
conscience. 

Though  the  daisy-clad  hills  and  valleys  of  Tyrone  were  dear  to 
his  heart  and  the  melting  notes  of  the  linnet  were  sweet  to  his  ear,  yet 
with  that  keen  forecast  of  the  future  which  he  intuitively  possessed,  he 
firmly  resolved,  like  millions  of  his  countrymen,  to  seek  in  another 
land  a  freeman's  home.  With  no  friend  but  his  talents  and  the  in 
tegrity  of  his  character,  conscious  that  there  is  a  nobility  far  above 
that  of  birth  and  a  wealth  beyond  and  superior  to  riches,  he  left  his 
home 

"Where  numberless  patriots,  vainly  brave, 
Had  died  for  the  land  they  could  not  save." 

Instinctively  he  turned  to  the  land  of  the  West,  "Where  the  sun 
beams  rest  when  they  promise  a  glorious  morrow,"  and,  bidding 
adieu  to  all  who  were  near  and  dear  to  him,  at  the  age  of  sixteen 
he  embarked  for  America  in  a  craft  less  seaworthy  than  the  Santa 
Maria.  He  here  taught  school  and  studied  jurisprudence,  a  science 
which  does  more  to  enlarge  the  human  mind  than  all  others;  which 
establishes  the  criterion  of  right  and  wrong  and  seeks  to  maintain 
.  the  one  and  prevent  the  other;  to  which  all  nations  are  subject;  and 
becoming  a  shining  light  in  that  profession  which  has  at  all  times,  in 
this  country  at  least,  furnished  more  heroes,  warriors,  jurists  and 
statesmen  than  any  other  that  can  be  mentioned.  His  capabilities 
were  great,  his  discernment  keen,  and  judgment  sound;  therefore  he 
soon  decided  that  another  long  journey  was  necessary  before  he 
could  reach  a  fruitful  field  of  usefulness. 

The  Mississippi  Valley,  the  future,  if  not  the  present,  seat  of 
empire  in  this  country,  became  his  home,  ten  years  after  he  had  be 
come  an  American,  which  he  never  thereafter  ceased  to  be,  in  the 
fullest,  best  and  broadest  signification  of  that  term.  When  twenty-six 
years  old,  he  was  a  member  of  the  Illinois  Legislature  at  a  time  when 
Chicago,  the  marvel  of  the  world  of  this  day  and  generation,  had 
less  than  four  thousand  inhabitants,  copper-colored,  white  and  black. 
At  twenty-nine  he  was  state  auditor,  and  proved  a  very  successful 
financier.  At  thirty-three  he  had  reached  the  summit  of  a  lawyer's 
ambition — he  was  a  justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  great  prairie 
state. 

Lincoln,  Douglas,  Palmer,  Trumbull,  Conkling,  Davis,  Stephen 
T.  Logan,  Baker,  McDougall,  Edwards  and  hosts  of  other  brilliant 


350  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

men  then  practiced  before  him,  and  one  and  all  respected  him  highly. 
Such  rapid  growth  and  unparalleled  success  in  competition  with  future 
presidents,  vice-presidents,  United  States  senators  from  many  differ 
ent  states,  judges  and  generals  of  renown  speak  glowingly  of  his 
mental  and  moral  worth. 

But  shall  he  prove  "Our  morning  envy  and  our  evening  sigh?" 
Can  he  continue  to  adorn  every  position  he  shall  be  called  upon  to 
fill,  or  will  he  rest  upon  his  laurels?  Let  the  history  of  the  United 
States  answer. 

When  thirty-five  years  old  President  Polk  appointed  him  com- 
.missioner  of  the  general  land  office,  and  it  was  during  this  term  of 
service  that  he  conceived  the  beneficent  idea  of  colonizing  many  of 
his  race  upon  the  public  lands,  which  project  in  after  years  he  en 
deavored  to  successfully  carry  out,  but  it  was  reserved  for  an  army 
chaplain,  the  Apostle  of  Temperance  of  the  Northwest,  Archbishop 
Ireland,  to  demonstrate  the  feasibility  of  General  Shields'  plan  in  this 
regard. 

When  the  tocsin  of  war  was  sounded  on  the  Mexican  frontier, 
Judge  James  Shields  offered  his  services  for  the  field,  and  was  ap 
pointed  by  the  President  brigadier-general  of  volunteers  at  the  age 
of  thirty-six. 

With  General  Scott  he  marched  from  Vera  Cruz  to  the  capital 
of  Mexico  in  command  of  a  battalion  of  marines  and  New  York, 
South  Carolina  and  Pennsylvania  regiments  of  volunteers. 

At  Cerro  Gordo  Shields'  brigade  was  upon  the  extreme  right. 
It  consisted  of  the  Third  and  Fourth  Illinois  under  Colonels  Coleman 
and  Baker,  and  Colonel  Burnett's  New  York  regiment.  Under  a 
canopy  of  cannon  balls,  they  crossed  a  ravine,  deemed  by  the  Mexi 
cans  impassable,  and  advanced  upon  a  battery  with  a  celerity  that 
astonished  the  enemy. 

Santa  Anna  was  hurrying  his  forces  to  the  rear,  and  General 
Shields  was  upon  them  in  a  moment.  While  forming  his  men  for 
the  attack,  under  a  heavy  fire  from  the  enemy's  guns,  a  grape  shot, 
an  inch  and  a  quarter  in  diameter,  passed  through  his  right  lung 
and  out  of  his  back.  He  fell,  supposed  to  be  mortally  wounded, 
while  his  brave  volunteers,  to  avenge  his  loss,  charged  with  enthusiasm 
and  spirit,  captured  the  enemy's  loaded  guns,  and  the  rout  was 
complete.  President  Polk  breveted  him  major-general  of  volunteers 
for  gallant  and  meritorious  services  at  Cerro  Gordo. 

In  the  further  advance  to  the  City  of  Mexico  he  was  again 
severely  wounded  at  Contreras  and  at  the  battle  of  Chapultepec,  but 
did  not  leave  the  field.  In  the  corridors  of  this  beautiful  temple  of 
liberty  there  is  a  picture  painted  from  daguerreotypes,  which  Daguerre 
himself  took  on  the  field  of  battle,  showing  General  Shields  in  the 
thick  of  the  fight,  where  he  gloried  in  being,  and  where  commanders 
are  not  always  found. 

From  the  lips  of  the  grand  old  hero  I  learned  an  unwritten 
chapter  in  the  history  of  the  capture  of  the  City  of  Mexico.  It  is  this: 
General  Scott's  plan  was  to  enter  the  city  at  a  different  point  than 
that  which  General  Shields  was  ordered  to  attack.  This  fact  was  also 
well  known  to  brevet  Major-General  Shields,  yet  so  brave  were  the 
marines,  New  Yorkers,  South  Carolinians  and  Quakers  whom  he 
so  gallantly  led,  that  they  drove  the  Mexicans  before  them  with  head 
long  speed,  to  the  pride  of  their  commander  and  the  surprise  of 
General  Scott.  He,  therefore,  sent  one  of  his  staff  to  General  Shields 
with  orders  to  withdraw  his  forces.  When  the  officer  reported, 
Shields  told  him  to  wait  a  minute  until  his  message  could  be  re 
ceived,  while  the  troops  were  spurred  on  by  Shields.  Another  officer 
reported  a  message  from  General  Scott,  to  whom  a  similar  reply 
was  given.  General  Shields  said  to  me:  "I  then  remembered  that  at 


LIFE    OF    GEN.    SHIELDS.  351 

the  battle  of  the  Copenhagen  an  ensign  reported  to  Nelson  that  the 
signal  'cease  firing,'  had  been  displayed  on  Nelson's  superior's  ship, 
just  when  the  French  fleet  were  in  such  a  position  that  Nelson  could 
crush  and  capture  them  in  a  few  minutes.  He,  being  blind  of  one 
eye,  put  his  glass  to  it,  and  said  to  the  ensign,  'I  see  no  such  signal, 
and  then  continued  his  pursuit  of  the  enemy,  winning  deathless 
glory  thereby." 

General  Shields  further  stated  that  Major-General  Quitman,  his 
superior,  was  then  sent  by  Scott  to  ascertain  why  he,  Shields,  per 
sisted  in  disobeying  General  Scott's  orders  by  not  withdrawing  his 
troops.  When  Quitman  asked  Shields  this  question,  he  adroitly  an 
swered,  "I  have  received  no  such  orders;"  then  Quitman  gave  them 
verbally,  and  said,  "The  City  of  Mexico  is  not  to  be  taken  in  this 
way;"  whereupon  Shields  remarked,  "My  men,  if  permitted,  will  soon 
enter  that  gate  (pointing  to  the  Belen  Gate)  and  plant  our  colors  on 
the  walls  of  the  city,  but,  if  withdrawn  now,  with  no  support  at 
hand  to  cover  their  retreat,  the  enemy  will  turn  and  slaughter  them 
before  they  can  reach  their  camp.  Under  these  circumstances,  Gen 
eral  Quitman,  what  would  you  do?"  He  replied,  "You  have  received 
General  Scott's  orders.  I  will  not  advise.  You  are  in  command,  and 
must  take  the  responsibility  if  you  disobey;"  when  Shields  said,  "I 
will  take  it,"  rallied  his  troops,  continued  the  pursuit  of  the  enemy, 
and  in  a  few  minutes  Old  Glory  and  the  colors  ol  New  York,  South 
Carolina  and  Pennsylvania  in  triumph  waved  from  the  walls  of  the 
City  of  Mexico.  Then  Shields  turned  to  Major-General  Quitman  and 
said,  "Present  my  compliments  to  General  Scott,  and  say  that  the 
City  of  Mexico  has  been  taken  in  this  way." 

Ladies  and  gentlemen,  that  metal  had  the  true  ring;  of  such  ma 
terials  heroes  are  made. 

Of  that  little  band  of  heroes  which  won  so  many  victories  in 
Mexico  he  richly  deserves  the  title  of  "Bravest  of  the  Brave." 

One  sensation  he  never  had  the  faintest  conception  of,  that 
was  fear.  No  wonder  that  Senator  Hamer,  a  Mexican  War  veteran, 
said  in  the  Illinois  Senate,  when  it  unanimously  passed  the  bill  for 
this  monument,  that  "Shields  was  the  pride  of  General  Scott  and  the 
idol  of  the  army;  always  ready  to  lead  a  charge  or  do  a  daring  deed." 
No  hope  was  too  forlorn,  no  undertaking  too  hazardous,  no  duty 
too  perilous  for  him. 

He  quailed  not  amid  the  whirlwinds  of  fire  nor  in  the  storms  of 
shot  and  shell.  He  was  laudably  ambitious,  and  he  desired  to  leave 
a  name  that  would  be  "a  light  and  landmark  on  the  cliffs  of  Fame," 
yet  he  never  sacrificed  principle  for  position,  nor  honor  for  profit. 
He  aspired  to  distinction,  yet  his  ambition  was  never  beyond  his 
deserts. 

In  that  war  he  was  a  brevet  major-general  when  Grant  was  a 
lieutenant,  Lee  and  Beauregard  captains  of  engineers,  and  Jefferson 
Davis  a  colonel.  His  magnificent  career  as  a  citizen  soldier  made 
him  the  prototype  of  that  long  list  of  brilliant  officers  in  the  Civil 
War  who  astonished  the  world  by  the  wonderful  feats  of  valor  per 
formed  by  the  American  volunteers. 

Were  I  to  attempt  to  name  them  even  from  Illinois,  it  would 
transcend  the  limits  of  the  time  allotted  me.  General  Shields'  mili 
tary  genius,  skill  and  prowess  proved  that  West  Point  had  no 
patent  on  military  science  and  art,  and  thousands  of  the  greatest 
heroes  of  our  late  war  were,  like  him,  citizen  soldiers.  He  sprang 
from  a  race  noted  for  bravery,  and  from  Bunker  Hill  to  Yorktown, 
from  Quebec  to  Mexico,  from  one  end  of  the  Union  to  the  other,  in 
all  the  fiery  ordeals  through  which  the  nation  has  passed,  his  race 
has  at  least  kept  pace  with  any,  native  or  foreign,  which  ever  trod 
the  soil  of  this  continent.  Masses  of  them  sleep  in  nameless  graves; 


352  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

their  uncoffined  clay  has  mingled  with  mother  earth,  on  every  hill 
and  in  every  dale  in  this  broad  land  wherever  a  battle  for  freedom 
was  fought. 

Unknown  to  fame,  without  the  hope  of  earthly  reward,  they  filled 
the  ranks  and  marched  away,  proud  to  be  even  privates  in  an  army 
that  battled  for  liberty,  and,  as  each  fell  fighting  for  the  honor  of  our 
flag, 

ilHe  smiled  to  see  its  glory  fly 
In  triumph  o'er  his  closing  eye." 

But  peace  has  its  triumphs  no  less  renowned  than  war,  and 
after  the  conquest  of  Mexico,  General  Shields  returned  to  the  state 
of  Illinois  and  to  the  practice  of  the  legal  profession.  His  state 
presented  him  with  a  sword  that  cost  three  thousand  dollars,  and 
South  Carolina  presented  him  with  a  diamond-hilted  sword  which 
cost  five  thousand  dollars.  These  he  prized  more  than  all  his  earthly 
possessions,  and  when  he  died  left  his  widow  and  children  the  swords 
of  Cerro  Gordo,  which,  with  his  blessing,  was  about  all  he  had  to 
leave  them. 

The  people  of  the  great  state  of  Illinois  were  not  unmindful  of 
the  fidelity  with  which  General  Shields,  while  auditor  of  the  state, 
had  guarded  its  finances,  nor  the  wisdom  and  impartiality  with  which, 
as  justice  of  the  Supreme  Court,  he  decided  their  causes,  and,  although 
Senator  Breese  had  distinguished  himself  as  United  States  Senator 
and  was  a  candidate  for  reelection,  yet  General  Shields'  popularity 
was  so  great  that  he  defeated  Senator  Breese,  and  in  1848  was  elected 
United  States  Senator  for  the  term  of  six  years. 

As  the  colleague  of  Stephen  A.  Douglas,  he  represented  Illinois 
from  1849  to  1855,  which  was  during  a  very  important  and  critical 
period  of  the  country's  history. 

Several  of  the  greatest  events  at  that  time  were  the  admission  of 
California,  the  compromise  measures  of  1850,  the  building  of  con 
tinental  railroads,  and  the  granting  of  public  lands  to  them,  especially 
the  Illinois  Central,  from  the  lakes  to  the  gulf,  and  the  routes  to  the 
Pacific;  the  Homestead  Act,  the  Hungarian  Revolution  and  the 
reception  of  Louis  Kossuth  by  the  United  States  Senate,  and  the 
more  efficient  organization  of  the  army. 

As  an  active  and  intelligent  participant  in  these  events,  and  the 
legislative  enactments  pertaining  thereto,  Senator  Shields  proved  him 
self  a  great  man  among  very  great  men. 

It  was  the  period  when  Webster,  Clay,  Calhoun,  Benton,  Cass, 
Douglas  and  Jefferson  Davis  were  some  of  the  grandest  figures  of 
the  age;  when  Chase,  John  C.  Breckinridge,  Sumner,  Fessenden  and 
Everett  were  already  commanding  figures  in  our  history. 

This  was  the  beginning  of  the  end  of  the  slavery  struggle;  as  a 
public  question  it  entered  into  nearly  every  important  debate  in  the 
Senate.  Senator  Shields  was  opposed  to  the  extension  of  slavery,  al 
though  his  party  was  pro-slavery,  and,  as  a  rule,  he  was  found  on 
the  side  of  humanity  and  freedom. 

In  the  Thirty-first  Congress  he  was  a  member  of  three  important 
committees,  viz.,  on  the  District  of  Columbia,  military  affairs  and 
public  lands,  and  also  was  a  member  of  a  select  committee  on  the 
census. 

All  through  his  senatorial  career  the  record  shows  that  he 
constantly  favored  the  reception  of  petitions  against  the  extension  of 
slavery.  He  was  among  the  first  and  most  active  in  aiding  internal 
improvements  by  granting  lands  to  railroads  which  he  recognized  as 
important  instruments  of  commerce  and  practical  means  of  develop 
ing  the  resources  of  the  country,  furnishing  markets  for  actual  settlers. 

One  of  the  earliest  attempts  to  secure  grants   of  land  in   limited 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  353 

quantities  to  actual  settlers  came  from  Illinois  and  was  presented  and 
urged  by  Senator  Shields. 

On  April  5,  1850,  the  admission  of  California  hinging  upon  the 
question  of  slavery,  Senator  Shields  spoke  at  length,  commencing  by 
referring  with  much  feeling  to  the  great  Calhoun,  who  had  recently 
died,  lie  said:  "Sir,  it  is  with  feelings  subdued  and  deepened  by  the 
sad  event,  that  I  enter  this  morning  upon  the  simple  and  humble 
duty  of  denning  my  position  and  explaining  the  motive  that  will 
govern  my  future  in  this  body  upon  the  delicate  questions  now  under 
consideration."  He  then  proceeded  to  state  in  clear  and  unmistakable 
terms  his  uncompromising  opposition  to  the  extension  of  slavery  into 
California,  and  delivered  one  of  the  ablest,  wisest  speeches  in  that 
assemblage  of  senatorial  giants  that  had  ever  been  listened  to.  Every 
word  that  he  uttered  carried  the  invincible  strength  that  marks  a  man 
of  strong  convictions.  In  his  course,  referring  to  the  great  effort  of 
Clay  of  conciliation,  he  said: 

"I  forgot  on  that  occasion  that  I  was  a  Democrat,  and  that  he 
was  the  great  leader  of  the  Whig  party.  I  remembered  nothing  but 
the  great  cause  and  the  great  advocate.  I  saw  nothing  but  the 
great  Republican  and  the  great  American." 

I  cannot  stop  to  quote  further  from  it,  but  will  remark  in  passing 
that  whoever  will  read  and  study  it  will  form  an  exalted  conception 
of  its  greatness  and  the  humanity  of  its  author. 

In  advocating  the  extension  of  the  Illinois  Central  to  Mobile,  he 
said: 

"As  it  is  to  connect  North  and  South  so  thoroughly,  it  may 
serve  to  get  rid  of  the  Wilmot  proviso  and  tie  us  together  so 
effectually  that  even  the  idea  of  separation  will  be  impossible." 

On  another  occasion,  we  observe  the  key  to  his  character  when 
he  said,  "I  want  to  accomplish  nothing  indirectly.  If  we  cannot 
carry  the  measure  directly,  let  it  fail." 

On  February  9,  1852,  while  discussing  a  resolution  of  sympathy 
for  William  Smith  O'Brien  and  Thomas  Francis  Meagher,  Senator 
Shields  spoke  as  follows: 

"We  wish  to  see  them  receive  no  other  reception  than  that 
which  the  generous  American  heart  always  renders  to  the  noble  and 
unfortunate.  At  this  age  of  the  world,  I  think  it  is  generally  ad 
mitted  that  to  punish  a  man  for  a  political  offense,  without  a  very 
strong  political  necessity,  is  not  an  act  of  justice  or  self-defense,  but, 
on  the  contrary,  an  act  of  cruel,  useless,  and  impolitic  vengeance." 

Let  me  ask  any  of  Meagher's  brigade,  or  their  opponents  at 
St.  Mary's  Heights,  whether  these  words  of  sympathy  were  unmerited. 

While  I  realize  that  a  full  knowledge  of  the  very  eminent  services 
of  Senator  Shields  is  indispensable  to  an  adequate  estimate  of  his 
greatness  as  a  man,  a  patriot,  and  a  statesman,  it  is  impossible  on 
this  occasion  for  me  to  even  briefly  allude  to  them. 

I  shall  only  mention  another  matter  in  this  connection: 

The  pro-slavery  Democrats  were  very  anxious  to  annex  Cuba,  ajid, 
believing  it  impossible  to  secure  the  consent  of  Spain  on  such  terms 
as  would  prove  favorable,  a  proposition  in  secret  caucus  was  made 
to  bribe  the  Spanish  Minister,  whereupon  General  Shields  sprang 
to  his  feet  and  indignantly  protested  against  such  a  vile  course  of 
proceeding,  and  said  if  an  attempt  were  made  to  persist  in  it,  that 
he  would  consider  himself  free  to  divulge  the  secrets  of  the  caucus. 
This  effectually  ended  the  matter. 

In  1855,  at  the  close  of  his  term  of  office,  Lincoln  and  Palmer,  our 
present  Senator,  combined  to  defeat  Shields'  reelection.  Lincoln's  heart 
was  set  upon  being  United  States  Senator,  and  he  wrote  to  a  bosom 
friend,  "I  would  rather  have  a  full  term  in  the  United  States  Senate 
than  the  presidency." 

23 


354:  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

On  the  first  ballot  in  the  Legislature  on  February  8,  1855,  Lincoln 
received  forty-five,  Shields  forty-one,  and  Trumbull  five  votes.  On 
the  tenth  ballot,  Lincoln  urged  his  friends  to  vote  for  Trumbull,  whom 
Palmer  had  constantly  voted  for,  and  Trumbull  was  declared  elected 
after  reciving  fifty-one  votes.  It  was  no  disgrace  to  have  received 
so  large  a  vote  and  to  have  been  beaten  by  such  a  strong  com 
bination.  This  ended  General  Shields'  official  career  in  Illinois. 

In  passing,  I  desire  to  correct  a  grievous  error  that  exists  in 
regard  to  a  supposed  duel  that  some  would-be  historian  pretended 
occurred  between  Lincoln  and  Shields.  The  facts  as  stated  by  Isaac 
N.  Arnold,  the  life-long  friend  and  historian  of  Lincoln,  -are  that 
Mrs.  Lincoln,  when  a  giddy  girl,  under  a  nom  de  plume,  ridiculed 
General  Shields  and  reflected  on  the  race  from  which  he  sprang. 
Shields,  smarting  under  this  unprovoked  attack,  insisted  on  the  editor 
of  the  paper  in  which  it  was  published  informing  him  as  to  who  was 
the  author  of  the  article.  Lincoln,  through  gallantry,  assumed  the 
authorship  of  the  article,  whereupon  Shields  resorted  to  the  only 
mode  of  redress  open  to  a  gentleman  of  that  day;  he  challenged 
Lincoln  to  mortal  combat,  seconds  were  appointed,  a  place  of 
meeting  agreed  upon,  and  Lincoln  as  of  right  selected  the  weapons, 
named  cavalry  broad  swords  of  the  largest  size,  which,  with  Lincoln's 
long  reach,  being  over  six  feet  three  in  height,  and  Shields  being  a 
comparatively  small  man,  gave  the  former  a  decided  advantage,  but 
happily,  before  the  hostile  parties  had  reached  the  place  of  meeting, 
Colonel  Hardin  and  others  brought  about  a  reconciliation  upon  sat 
isfactory  explanations  having  been  made,  and  Lincoln  and  Shields  were 
ever  afterwards  life-long  friends. 

In  1855  Shields  removed  to  Minnesota,  and  so  captivating  were 
his  manners,  and  so  genial  his  nature,  that  he  seemed  to  make  a 
friend  of  every  acquaintance,  and  on  the  admission  of  the  state  into 
the  Union  he  became  its  first  United  States  Senator.  As  such,  he 
distinguished  himself  on  the  floor,  and  in  committees,  and  linked  his 
name  with  many  measures  of  great  importance  to  the  state  and  the 
country  at  large. 

Later  in  life,  he  became  a  citizen  of  California,  and  on  August 
19,  1861,  he  was  commissioned  brigadier-general  of  volunteers  for 
that  state,  and  on  March  23,  1862,  he  won  the  first  great  victory  on 
the  famous  battlefield  of  Winchester.  The  supposed  invincible  Stone 
wall  Jackson  was  making  rapid  strides  southward,  hotly  pursued  by 
Banks,  under  whom  Shields  served  at  that  time,  and  the  Confederate 
forces  were  a  few  miles  south  of  Winchester.  Shields  was  anxious 
to  bring  on  a  battle,  and  for  that  purpose  marched  his  troops  thirty 
miles  in  one  day.  His  forces  then  consisted  of  the  Thirty-ninth  Illi 
nois,  Thirteenth  and  Fourteenth  Indiana,  Fifth,  Seventh  and  Eighth 
Ohio,  Eighty-fourth  and  One  Hundred  and  Tenth  Pennsylvania.  His 
plan  was  to  induce  Jackson  to  turn  and  attack  the  Federal  forces,  and, 
for  that  purpose,  he  posted  the  most  of  his  forces  in  a  secluded  posi 
tion  in  the  rear  and  north  of  Winchester,  while  with  one  or  two 
regiments  he  advanced  through  Winchester  and  attacked  Jackson's 
position.  The  battle  opened,  and  for  a  while  was  hotly  contested, 
when,  upon  a  given  signal,  the  Federal  troops  in  action  suddenly 
retreated  through  Winchester,  hotly  pursued  by  Jackson's  forces, 
who  learned  from  their  sympathizers  in  Winchester  that  there  were 
but  a  couple  of  regiments  of  Federals.  Then  the  Confederates  in 
large  numbers  rushed  through  Winchester  and  endeavored  to  cap 
ture  the  Northern  troops,  whereupon  Shields  ordered  all  his  reserve 
regiments  into  the  field,  drove  Stonewall's  forces  through  Win 
chester,  capturing  several  hundred  prisoners,  and  killing  and  wounding 
many  of  them.  Historians,  North  and  South,  concede  that  in  this 
fight  the  man  of  bronze  defeated  the  man  of  stone,  and  the  signal 


LIFE    OF    GEN.    SHIELDS.  355 

honor  was  reserved  to  Shields  of  having  been  the  ftrst,  and,  it  might  be 
added,  the  last,  man  who  ever  defeated  Stonewall  Jackson. 

A  few  months  after  that  engagement,  in  which  Shields'  right 
arm  was  broken  by  a  shell  and  his  side  injured,  he  resigned  his  com 
mission  and  retired  to  his  home  at  Carrollton,  Missouri,  where  he 
ever  afterward  lived. 

He  served  as  a  member  of  the  State  Legislature,  and  at  a'  ripe 
age,  in  the  full  possession  of  all  his  powers  and  vigor,  he  was 
elected  United  States  Senator  from  Missouri,  thereby  becoming  a 
Senator  from  three  states,  which  is  a  greater  honor  than  any  other 
man  ever  held  in  this  country. 

In  closing  his  official  career,  I  cannot  refrain  from  relating  one 
incident,  which  is  known  as  a  matter  of  tradition,  but  which  i  de 
sire  to  have  made  a  matter  of  history: 

On  the  eve  of  the  capture  of  the  City  of  Mexico,  while  Shields' 
forces  were  in  an  advanced  position,  a  boy  entered  his  tent,  and 
informed  the  General  that  his  sister  was  in  the  besieged  city,  and 
that  they  had  overheard  a  plot  which  was  formed  in  case  the  Mexicans 
were  defeated,  for  certain  brigands  or  chiefs  to  take  his  sister  into 
the  forests  and  keep  her  and  compel  her  to  live  with  them,  and, 
in  her  dire  distress  over  a  fate  worse  than  that  of  death,  she  had 
implored  him  to  endeavor  to  reach  the  American  forces,  to  state 
her  condition,  and  implore  aid.  Shields  knew  that  whatever  was  to 
be  done  had  to  be  done  quickly.  He  therefore  called  together  a 
portion  of  his  troops,  laid  the  facts  before  them,  and  said:  "I  have 
no  authority  to  command  you  to  go  to  the  relief  of  this  English 
lady,  but,  if  I  can  get  a  bodyguard  of  volunteers,  I  will  make  the 
attempt  to  recue  her  from  her  impending  fate."  Such  was  the  char 
acter  of  the  men  he  addressed  that  more  volunteered  than  were 
required. 

Led  by  the  boy,  they  safely  entered  the  city,  reached  the  house, 
and  returned  almost  to  camp  before  they  were  observed,  when  the 
signal  lights  were  displayed,  guns  fired,  and  an  attempt  made  to 
capture  them,  but  fortunately  all  escaped  uninjured.  The  next  morn 
ing  General  Scott  instituted  inquiries  as  to  the  cause  of  the  firing 
in  the  vicinity  of  General  Shields'  camp,  and  finally  ascertained  the 
rash  act  of  the  brilliant  young  commander.  Scott  rode  down  to 
Shields'  headquarters,  and  demanded  an  explanation,  whereupon  the 
rescued  lady  knelt  in  tears  and  implored  him  to  pardon  Shields' 
noble  act,  but  Scott  was  unyielding  and  said:  "Shields,  I  shall  court 
martial  you;  I  shall  have  you  dishonorably  discharged,  and  disgrace 
you;"  when  Shields  spoke  up,  saying,  "General  Scott,  you  can  court 
martial  me,  you  may  have  me  dishonorably  discharged,  but  no  one, 
except  myself,  can  disgrace  me."  Then  the  interview  ended,  and  in  the 
heroism  displayed  by  General  Shields  next  day,  by  which,  in  defiance 
of  orders,  his  forces  were  the  first  to  plant  their  colors  on  the  walls 
of  Mexico,  all  thoughts  of  court  martial  were  forgotten,  and  for  the 
last  thirty  years  of  his  life  General  Shields  wore  upon  his  manly 
bosom  a  beautiful  emerald  encircled  with  priceless  diamonds,  the 
gift  of  the  lady  whose  honor  he  had  saved  on  the  eve  of  the  taking 
of  Mexico. 

"No  knight  of  old  or  warrior  bold"  ever  paid  a  higher  tribute 
to  womanhood  than  this,  and,  when  one  stops  to  consider  the  dire 
effect  upon  General  Shields'  career,  the  capture  of  himself  and  his 
volunteer  heroes  on  that  night  would  have  entailed,  then  he  can 
estimate  the  unparalleled  risk  that  he  took. 

His  stainless  record  of  over  forty  years  of  usefulness  in  field  and 
in  forum,  in  peace  and  in  war,  is  one  which  the  youth  of  our  country 
should  endeavor  to  imitate  since  it  is  noble  and  self-sacrificing. 

Gentleness  and  generosity,   candor  and  courage   coupled  with   a 


356  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

deferential  manner,  were  a  few  of  the  graces  that  won  him  hosts 
of  friends,  whom  he  always  retained.  He  was  one  of  those  truly 
great  men  who  laid  the  foundations  broad  and  deep  of  the  great 
commonwealths  of  Illinois  and  Minnesota,  and  made  an  impress  on 
the  times  in  which  he  lived  that  few  equaled  and  none  excelled.  His 
lofty  ideals  and  genuine  patriotism  were  the  admiration  of  one  and 
all.  He  brought  to  the  discharge  of  his  important  duties  as  justice 
of  our  Supreme  Court,  brigadier-general  in  the  Mexican  War,  and 
United  States  Senator  for  three  states,  a  mind  well  stored  with  legal 
principles,  a  vast  knowledge  of  constitutional  law,  as  well  as  rich 
a-nd  varied  experiences  which  thoroughly  equipped  him  to  adorn 
every  position  that  he  was  called  upon  to  fill,  and  particularly  those 
just  referred  to.  He  was  a  perfect  gentleman,  a  lover  of  truth,  on 
the  bench  he  was  dignified,  and  held  the  scales  of  Justice  so  evenly 
that  he  became  known  and  appreciated  as  an  impartial,  bold  and 
fearless  judge,  whom  no  flattery  could  influence,  and  no  power 
control.  He  was  humane,  sincere,  honest,  and  sagacious.  His  was 
a  development  of  the  noblest  and  best  traits  of  humanity  that  were 
seldom  seen  even  in  that  era  of  great  men.  His  fame  is  secure. 
Illinois  has  embalmed  his  memory.  Imperishable  as  the  everlasting 
hills  will  be  the  fame  of  his  gallant  deeds  and  sublime  thoughts. 
On  the  roll  of  honor  his  name  is  inscribed  in  letters  of  living  light, 
and  unborn  ages  shall  cluster  round  the  base  of  his  statue,  and 
wonder  to  see  this  triple-crowned  hero,  the  pride  of  three  great 
states,  and  the  glory  of  this  indestructible  Union.  With  pen,  voice 
and  sword  he  contended  for  the  unity  of  states,  as  well  as  for  humanity. 
His  great  experience,  exalted  character  and  attainments  denoted  ex 
traordinary  gifts  of  a  rare  order,  and  the  fearlessness  and  devotion 
with  which  he  promoted  the  interests  and  protected  the  rights  en 
trusted  to  his  care  and  guidance  will  forever  keep  his  memory  green. 
No  brighter  example  of  worthy  citizenship  was  ever  placed  on 
pedestal  or  reared  by  art  for  public  admiration.  This  tribute  to  de 
parted  worth  will  for  generations  teach  all  that  genuine  patriotism 
shall  ever  be  highly  prized  by  a  free  and  intelligent  people,  and  that 
honoring  the  noble  dead  is  the  most  pleasing  duty  that  the  living  can 
perform.  This  monument  shall  speak  in  unmistakable  language  of 
the  fervent  love  and  undying  affection  of  the  millions  who  are  to-day 
represented  in  this  hall  to  honor  the  memory  of  one  whose  character 
was  above  suspicion  and  beyond  reproach.  It  was  not  while  the 
nation  was  bent  in  sorrow,  bewailing  his  death,  and  every  soldier 
was  experiencing  the  loss  of  a  friend  that,  acting  on  the  impulse  of 
the  moment,  he  was  chosen  as  the  elect  of  Illinois.  No.  But,  after 
the  searchlight  of  impartial  investigation  into  the  lives  and  characters 
of  hundreds  of  the  great  men  who  have  made  the  prairie  state  second 
to  none  in  this  Union  in  all  that  typifies  progress  and  development, 
General  James  Shields  was  named  to  be  the  first  to  fill  a  niche 
in  this  temple  of  fame.  I  utter  no  commonplace  when  I  say  that 
thereby  Illinois  has  paid  a  national  debt  of  gratitude  to  one  of  the 
noblest  of  men,  who  in  youth  and  in  age  offered  his  life  for  the  honor 
of  our  flag,  and  the  integrity  of  our  Union.  He  fought  that  our  great 
inheritance  of  liberty  should  live  forever;  he  felt  that 

"  Tis  not  death  to  fight  for  freedom's  right, 
He's  dead  alone  that  lacks  her  light. 
He  was  a  hero  that  won  battles  for  the  free, 
And  the  thanks  of  millions  yet  to  be." 

Looking  at  Shields  in  the  threefold  character  of  general,  lawyer 
and  legislator,  it  might  be  difficult  to  measure  his  greatness  with  criti 
cal  exactness,  lest  the  qualities  of  the  one  should  be  eclipsed  or  over- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  357 

looked  in  the  adaptations  of  either  of  the  others;  ordinarily  it  would 
be  so,  but  in  the  intense  individuality  of  the  man,  we  find  ourselves 
unenvironcd  with  the  slightest  difficulty  in  arriving  at  just  conclusions 
in  relation  to  his  triune  position.  In  each,  and  in  all  three,  he  was 
great.  As  a  general  he  was  resplendent  as  a  military  leader,  as  a 
lawyer  he  laboriously  advanced  step  by  step  on  the  plane  of  progress 
to  the  head  of  his  profession,  until  he  proudly  graced  the  bench  of 
the  highest  judicial  tribunal  in  the  state;  as  a  legislator,  he  stands 
alone  in  this  or  any  other  land  as  the  one  and  only  statesman  who 
respectively  represented  three  sovereign  communities  and  common 
wealths  in  the  highest  legislative  assembly  in  the  nation.  In  war,  in 
law  and  in  legislation,  General  Shields  was  successful,  and,  if  success 
is  the  measure  of  greatness,  then  General  Shields  was  emphatically  a 
great  man.  The  fact  is,  he  was  born  and  destined  to  be  great. 

Generals,  like  poets,  "are  born,  not  made."  And  one  cannot  ob 
tain  by  military  training  the  innate  genius  that  leads  to  great  achieve 
ments  in  opportune  moments,  nor  can  tactical  instruction  communicate 
to  the  human  brain  the  sublime  aspirations  and  aptitudes  that  turn 
pending  defeat  into  victory,  and  approaching  disaster  into  triumph — 
such  fortuitous  intuitions  cannot  be  acquired  under  the  drillmaster. 
One  may  learn  in  the  school  of  the  soldier  the  critical  and  expert 
manipulations  of  troops,  which  may  lead  to  splendid  evolutions  of 
certain  military  divisions  or  of  whole  armies;  but  nature  alone  can 
give  to  man  or  form  in  the  human  mind  the  unspeakable  combina 
tions  that  create  the  talents  of  the  soldier  who  becomes  a  conqueror. 
A  man  may  become  a  professional  soldier  by  special  training,  he  may 
lead  troops  and  command  armies,  while  the  genius  of  the  soldier  is 
utterly  lacking  in  his  composition.  However,  Shields  was  peculiarly 
gifted  with  military  genius — he  was  a  born  soldier,  born  in  that  land 
that  is  preeminently  the  mother  of  soldiers — a  soldier  not  by  early 
choice,  or  by  being  bred  to  the  profession  of  arms — but  by  genius 
and  the  opportunity  of  fortuitous  circumstances. 

In  him  the  genius  for  command  and  leadership  was  peculiarly 
developed;  in  fact,  he  was  a  singular  combination  of  the  dashing 
cavalier  soldier  and  the  profound  field  marshal,  which  can  be  but 
seldom  found  in  one  man,  but  are  often  found  separate  in  soldiers. 
No  happier  illustration  can  be  found  of  these  two  soldierly  qualities 
than  that  presented  in  the  lives  of  two  of  his  soldier  countrymen — 
Wellington  profoundly  engaged  and  deliberately  watching  the  sub 
lime  moment  on  the  field  of  Waterloo  to  grasp  a  world-changing 
victory,  and  Cardigan  leading  his  splendid  brigade  to  world-renowned 
death  in  the  ravine  of  Balakalava.  Shields  was  a  combination  of  both 
leaders,  the  highest  and  best  type  of  the  soldier. 

The  historians  of  the  future  will  see  the  greatness  and  grandeur 
of  Shields  in  clearer  and  brighter  light  than  contemporary  writers 
have  been  able  to  behold;  the  present  generation  has  been  too  close 
to  the  man,  too  near  to  his  life  work,  and  the  rays  of  his  glory 
have  been  so  intense  as  to  obscure  their  perfect  vision  of  his  physi 
cal,  moral  and  mental  characteristics  and  attributes.  Tempered  by  time 
and  distance,  future  historians  will  be  able  to  discover  the  effects  as 
well  as  the  causes  of  his  greatness.  The  man  who  sank  personalism 
in  duty,  selfishness  in  patriotism,  who  sacrificed  his  individuality  for 
the  public  weal,  whose  every  heart-throb  was  with  and  for  humanity, 
whose  soul  was  devoted  to  liberty,  will  shine  brightly  in  the  future. 
To  him  freedom  was  a  living,  immutable  fact  inherent  in  man,  and 
being  true  to  freedom,  he  was  true  to  humanity.  In  peace  and  war 
alike  he  was  faithful  to  the  people,  always  taking  sides  with  the 
oppressed,  and  the  people  of  the  future  will  worship  a  name  that  was 
always  honorably  and  faithfully  devoted  to  the  preservation  of  the 
rights  of  man,  the  soldier,  jurist  and  statesman,  the  true,  the  brave, 
the  renowned. 


358  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

At  the  age  of  threescore  years  and  ten  his  spirit  winged  its  flight 
to  his  Maker.  It  was  after  a  day  spent  in  prayer,  during  which  he 
three  times  knelt  before  the  altar  at  which  ten  millions  of  his  country 
men  pay  their  reverence,  that  he  received  the  final  summons.  Calm, 
resolute  and  self-possessed,  he  arose  from  his  couch  and,  while  the 
king  of  day  was  bathing  the  western  heavens  in  glory,  he  passed 
away,  like  one  who  wraps  the  drapery  of  his  couch  around  him,  and 
lies  down  to  'pleasant  dreams. 

"We  tell  thy  doom  without  a  sigh, 
For  thou  art  freedom's  now,  and  fame's, 
One  of  the  few,  the  immortal  names 
That  were  not  born  to  die." 

When  the  lips  of  all  within  the  sound  of  my  voice  in  this  bril 
liant  assemblage  shall  be  sealed  forever,  and  each  shall  have  taken  his 
place  "in  the  silent  halls  of  Death"  (Miss  Shields  then  unveiled  the 
statue),  this  statue  shall  stand,  in  the  language  of  the  peerless  Web 
ster,  "A  memorial  of  the  past,  and  a  monitor  to  the  present  and  all 
succeeding  generations.  Its  speech  will  be  of  patriotism  and  courage, 
of  civil  and  religious  liberty,  of  free  government,"  and  of  the  immortal 
memory  of  General  James  Shields'  devotion  to  his  country. 

When  Miss  Shields  unveiled  the  statue  a  salvo  of  applause  from 
the  multitude  greeted  her  act,  and  brought  color  to  her  cheeks,  she 
bowing  gracefully,  in  recognition  of  the  compliment. 

Governor  Altgeld  arose,  amid  a  ripple  of  applause,  and  delivered 
a  masterly  oration,  from  which  I  cull  the  following:  "General 
Shields  himself  was  shot  a  number  of  times  while  fighting  for  the 
flag  of  his  country;  yet  he,  in  his  day,  heard  men,  as  we  do  in  our 
day,  inveighing  against  the  foreign-born  and  seeking  to  apply  a 
different  law  to  them  from  that  applied  to  the  natives. 

"The  life  of  General  Shields  is  a  fitting  response  to  all  such 
people.  If  the  great  soul  of  Shields  could  animate  this  statue,  but 
for  an  hour,  with  what  infinite  scorn  would  his  proud  spirit  look  upon 
these  men,  who,  having  bled  on  no  battlefield,  stormed  the  ramparts 
of  no  armed  enemy,  solved  no  great  problem  for  humanity,  done 
nothing  to  develop  our  resources,  taken  no  part  in  laying  the  founda 
tion  of  state  or  building  its  superstructure;  who  having  done  nothing 
to  make  their  country  great  or  their  age  illustrious,  now  seek  to 
turn  the  accident  of  birth  into  a  virtue  by  an  act  of  Congress. 

"Every  age  has  produced  millions  of  strong  and  industrious 
men,  who  knew  no  higher  god  than  the  dollar;  who  coined  their  lives 
into  sordid  gold;  who  gave  no  thought  to  blessing  the  world  or  lifting 
up  humanity;  men  who  owned  ships  and  palaces  and  stocks  and 
the  riches  of  the  earth;  who  gilded  meanness  with  splendor  and  then 
sank  into  oblivion.  Posterity  erected  no  statue  to  their  memory,  and 
there  was  not  a  pen  in  the  universe  that  would  even  preserve  a  letter 
of  their  names.  Let  the  young  men  of  America  learn  from  this  statue 
and  from  the  career  of  General  Shields  that  the  battle  of  virtue  and 
of  honor,  the  paths  of  glory  and  immortality  are  open  to  them." 

Representative  John  C.  Tarnsey  of  Missouri  next  spoke  eloquently 
of  the  dead  hero.  Senator  Turpie  of  Indiana  said,  in  part:  "Shields 
was  not  an  Irishman.  He  was  an  American.  I  care  not  for  the  land  of 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  359 

his  nativity.     He  was  an  American  in  every  quality  that  constitutes  a 
good   American,   and   he  could  not  be  born   again." 

Recited  by  a  Student  of  Georgetown  University. 

THE   SWORD    OF   CERRO    GORDO. 
By  Charles  J.   Beattie,   of  the   Chicago   Bar. 

Sound  the  loud  bugle! — roll  the  drum! 

Your  standard  flag  unfurl  to-day, 
From  every  state  the  people  come, 

Their  debt  of  gratitude  to  pay 
To  him  who  in  the  battle  van 
Gave  heart  and  soul  and  sword  to  man — 
The  Sword  of  Cerro  Gordo! 

From  the  glad  north — the  sunny  south, 

The  east — the  west — from  shore  to  shore, 

And  from  the  cannon's  iron  mouth 
Let    salutations    loudly   roar — 

For  him  whose  sword  in  siege  and  field 

Was  freedom's  bulwark — honor's  shield — 

The  Sword  of  Cerro   Gordo! 

For  Shields,  the  statesman,  pure  and  true, 

For  Shields,  the  hero  of  two  wars, 
Who  led  the  gallant  boys  in  blue 

To  victory  'neath  the  stripes  and  stars, 
Whose  sword  flashed  in  the  hottest  fight 
For  home  and  country — truth  and  right — 
The  Sword  of   Cerro   Gordo! 

That  peerless  sword  in  fight  was  seen — 

To  flash  upon  a  foreign  strand 
By  mountain  ford  and  forest  green; 

And  here   in  freedom's  holy  land 
At  Winchester  it  gain'd  the  day — 
And  vanquished  Stonewall  in  the  fray — 

The  Sword  of  Cerro   Gordo! 

Son  of  fair  Erin — let  the  place 

That  gave  him  birth,  be  honor'd  here. 
Sons  of  his  land — a  hero  race — 

Remember  him  with  sigh  and  tear; 
Though  sheath'd  that  sword — the  bronze  unveil 
To  glad   the   Saxon  and  the   Gael — 

The   Sword  of   Cerro    Gordo! 

Raise  high  for  him  the   sculptur'd  stone, 

Three   states  the  august   statesman  claim, 

Missouri  calls  him  all  her  own, 

Fair   Minnesota  loves   his   name, 


360  LIFE    OF    GEN.    SHIELDS. 

In  Illinois  he  is  adored, 
Columbia  glories  in  his  sword, 

The   Sword  of   Cerro   Gordo! 

Twenty-nine  million  inhabitants  of  the  United  States  were  rep 
resented  by  the  presence  of  their  governors  or  those  delegated  to 
appear  for  them  at  the  unveiling;  every  state  that  had  a  regiment 
which  fought  under  him  in  Mexico  and  the  Civil  War,  as  well  as 
the  states  that  he  represented  in  the  Senate  and  Oregon  and  California. 


CHAPTER     XXVII. 


Banquet  at  National  Hotel — Large  Attendance — Poem,  "The  Shields 
Statue" — Long  List  of  Toasts  and  Eloquent  Responses — Dona- 
hoe's  Magazine — Beattie,  the  Poet,  a  Mexican  War  Veteran. 


The.  Shields'  banquet  was  held  at  the  National  Hotel.  One  hun 
dred  and  fifty  covers  were  laid,  amid  pyramids  of  fruit,  stands  of 
flowers  and  wreaths  of  smilax.  The  guests  included  delegates  from 
numerous  cities  and  prominent  legislators.  C.  H.  Mansur,  M.  C., 
through  whose  efforts  Shields'  swords  were  sold  to  the  National  Gov 
ernment,  acted  as  toastmaster,  spoke  feelingly  of  the  dead  hero  and 
then  read  the  "Shields'  Statue." 

THE  SHIELDS  STATUE. 
By   Charles  J.   Beattie. 

Unveil  the  statue!     Let  the  bronze  reveal 
The  gallant  soldier,  true  through  woe  and  weal; 
Son  of  the  island  green,  beyond  the  wave — 
Adopted  by  Columbia,   free   and   brave; 
To  her  he  gave  his  heart,  his  love,  his  life, 
In  peace  his  counsel,  and  his  sword   in   strife. 

When  the  wild  war  drum  with  its  dread  alarms 
Wakes   the  dread  echoes  with  the  call  to  arms, 
We  heard  the  trumpet  and  the  bugle  shrill, 
Call  to  the  camp,  the  muster  and  the  drill — 
When  on  our  Southern  border  massed  the  foe, 
And  fierce  invaders  storm'd  from  Mexico. 

When  fell   marauders   shed   our  soldiers'   blood, 
And  stained  our  soil  by  Rio  Grande's  flood, 
We  saw  the  patriot  host  to  battle  throng, 
For  our  lov'd  land — our  country  right  or  wrong — 
When  soldiers  mustered  or  for  Aztec  fields, 
First  in  the  line  was  seen  the  gallant  Shields. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  861 

When  the  fierce   storm   of  iron   hail    and   rain 

At  Vera  Cruz  swept  over  hill  and  plain, 

When  Hell's  red  fires  were  hurled  from  fort  and  crag, 

He  braved  their  furies  and  upheld  our  flag; 

In  the  wild  cyclone's  mass  of  wounds  and  death, 

He  won  the  soldier's  crown — the  hero's  wreath. 

In   the    advance  on   Cerro   Gordo's    height, 

He  seemed  the  master-spirit  of  the  fight; 

When   the  grim  batteries   from  the  ramparts  frowned, 

He  climbed  the  hill  with  all  death's  engines  round, 

Leading  the  storm  'gainst  embattl'd  walls, 

With  Spartan  courage  captured   its  high  halls. 

Hero    of  heroes!   in   his   bright   career, 

He   sought  the  post   of  danger,   void   of  fear; 

Foremost  in   fight — he  led  the  crimson  way — 

Into   the   hottest   of  the   bloody    fray, 

And  proud  as  Mars  amid  the  battle  wreck, 

Was   hailed   proud  victor    at   Chapultepec. 

Again   war's   sanguine   sounds   spread  on   the    gale, 
Fraternal  strife  convulsed  the  hill  and  vale, 
Wild  civil  war  with  all  its  untold  woes — 
The   North   and    South   embattl'd— bitter   foes; 
Troop  mustered  past  by   field  and  ford, 
Again   the   country  claimed    his  trusty   sword. 

Again  the  hero  led  in  war's  red  brunt — 
The  patriot  men  who  mustered  at  the  front 
In  battle's  grand  array,   who  nobly   stood 
Like  living  bulwarks  'gainst   the  crimson  flood; 
On   Winchester's  proud  heights  he  led   the   free 
And    crown'd    our   flag  with    glorious   victory. 

Yet  war  was  not  his  choice — his  destined  path — 
He  loved  not  bloodshed — and  he  sought  not  wrath, 
His   sphere  was   law — a  Senator  profound, 
'Gainst    slavery   and    injustice   ever   found, 
Who   represented  'mong   our  greatest — best — 
Three   sovereign  states  that  gild  the  mighty  West. 

Hail,   soldier  of  two   wars !     Hail,   statesman   true ! 
To-day  we  raise  the  cenotaph  to  you; 
Though  in  our  hearts  your  memory  ever  bright, 
Outlasts  the  chaos  of  the  field  and  fight — 
And  ever  green   be  watered  by   our  tears; 
Through  all  the  cycles  of  the  coming  years. 

The  toasts  were:  "The  State  of  Illinois,"  response  by  Governor 
Altgeld;  "Career  of  Shields  in  Illinois,"  response  by  General  Orendorf; 
"General  Shields,  Senator  from  Minnesota,"  response  by  Hon.  Mark 


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364  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

H.  Dunnell;  "General  Shields,  Senator  from  Missouri,"  response  by 
Hon.  Marsh  Arnold;  "General  Shields  as  an  Irishman,"  response  by 
Patrick  Donahoe. 

Mark  H.  Dunnell,  M.  C,  said  General  Shields'  advent  in  Minne 
sota  had  been  prior  to  his.  The  territory  and  state  had  loved  him. 
He  was  loved  and  remembered  still.  Minnesota  was  loyal  to  his  great 
ness.  Peace  to  his  ashes,  all  honor  to  his  greatness. 

Hon.  Marsh  Arnold  said  "Shields  was  the  son  of  a  race  that 
bad  lent  its  sunshine  to  all  climes  and  ages.  Shields'  career,  as  senator 
from  Missouri,  though  brief,  had  been  gilded  with  purity.  His  public 
character  was  as  stainless  as  his  private,  and  stood  as  a  monument 
to  his  name.  It  was  not  solely  as  the  intrepid  warrior  and  dashing 
rider  that  Missouri  revered  the  memory  of  Shields;  it  was  his  nobil 
ity  when  he  doffed  the  military  garb  and  donned  the  civil  robes. 
His  name  rested  on  Fame's  eternal  camping  ground  and  glittered  in 
the  meridian  blaze  of  heaven.  Shields  was  Irish,  and  this  meant  that 
he  was  a  lover  and  a  champion  of  freedom,  and  a  martyr  to  it,  if 
need  be." 

Governor  Altgeld  spoke  of  the  deeds  of  heroism  which  had  been 
done  upon  the  sacred  soil  of  Illinois  and  outside  her  confines  by 
those  heroes  she  had  bred.  It  was  the  land  in  which  had  been  fought 
the  battle  which  decided  that  Illinois  was  not  to  be  a  slave  state,  and 
practically  sealed  the  doom  of  slavery  on  cur  continent.  Her  record 
and  that  of  her  sons  in  the  Mexican  War  challenged  admiration,  and 
in  the  War  of  the  Rebellion  she  had  developed  some  of  the  greatest 
chieftains  who  had  ever  marshaled  men.  She  had  no  rival  in  the  race 
of  material  progress  and  development.  She  was  building  wonderful 
cities  and  was  working  the  marvels  of  the  age.  In  closing,  he  charac 
terized  Shields  as  "one  of  the  greatest  leaders  of  the  world." 

General  Orendorf  said,  "Illinois  took  its  name  from  an  Indian 
word  meaning  'the  home  of  great  men.'  It  was  not  a  misnomer. 
Shields  was  one  of  a  coterie  of  Illinois'  sons  who  had  left  their  finger 
prints  on  history  and  their  footprints  on  the  sands  of  time.  He  was 
the  compeer  of  Lincoln,  who  had  stepped  from  the  earth  to  his  home 
in  the  skies,  and  was  the  associate  of  Douglas.  Shields'  influence 
had  affected  the  course  of  Illinois.  The  gallant  Mulligan,  when  he  said 
from  his  stretcher,  'Lay  me  down,  but,  boys,  save  the  flag,'  was  influ 
enced  by  the  soul  and  spirit  of  Shields,  who  was  ever  on  the  side 
of  the  oppressed.  If  one  would  see  his  monument,  or  read  his  eulogy, 
look  around  into  the  faces  of  those  who  have  come  here  to  place  a 
wreath  upon  his  memory." 

Patrick  Donahoe  spoke  of  Shields  as  an  Irishman,  as  a  lover  of 
freedom,  a  champion  of  freedom,  a  martyr,  if  need  be,  for  freedom. 
General  Shields  spent  sixteen  years  of  his  life,  the  years  of  his  child 
hood  and  boyhood  in  Ireland.  He  was  thoroughly  identified,  from  the 
dawn  of  manhood  to  his  latest  breath,  with  the  land  of  his  adoption  as 
soldier  and  legislator.  He  was  a.  hero  in  two  wars  for  the  preservation 
of  American  liberty  and  union;  he  was  in  times  of  peace  a  potent 
factor  in  the  prosperity  of  the  great  state  of  Illinois,  which  has  so 


GEN.    SHIELDS    STATUE. 


366  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

nobly  honored  him;  and  he  represented  at  different  times  three  sov 
ereign  states  in  the  United  States  Senate.  But  he  was  not  specially 
identified  with  any  distinctly  Irish  movements.  Why,  then,  call  for 
honors  to  this  American  soldier  and  statesman  as  an  Irishman?  What 
special  service  has  he  done  for  Ireland?  Before  I  answer,  let  me  ask 
And  I  will  answer  both  questions  in  the  words  of  another  illustrious 
American-Irishman— by  his  Americanism.  This  is  how  General 
Shields  helped  Ireland;  this  is  how  Meade  and  Meagher  and  Cor 
coran  and  Sheridan  and  a  host  of  other  men  of  Irish  blood  best 
served  this  land  of  their  birth  and  that  of  their  ancestry.  Every  blow 
struck  for  freedom  anywhere  is  a  blow  for  Ireland's  cause,  and  who 
has  struck  with  truer  aim  than  Shields? 

Charles  J.  Beattie — the  poet — is  a  Mississipian,  was  captain  of  Com- 
oany  A  in  Colonel  Jefferson  Davis'  Regiment  of  riflemen  at  the  battle 
of  Buena  Vista,  and  bears  a  scar  on  his  right  temple  and  another  on  his 
left  leg  from  wounds  received  in  that  contest.  He  was  major  at  the 
close  of  the  war  and  left  his  father's  plantation  and  his  negroes  to  come 
North  to  oppose  slavery.  His  poems,  especially  those  breathing  a  mar- 
tial  spirit,  are  unsurpassed.  He  knew  General  Shields  at  Buena  Vista, 
and  always  admired  his  military  and  civic  career.  He  still  is  a  beloved 
citizen  of  Chicago,  though  it  is  to  be  regretted  that  his  health  is  poor, 
He  is  a  cultured,  refined  gentleman  of  the  old — and  therefore  best — 
school. 

Donahoe's  Magazine  is  the  only  publication  of  that  kind  that 
published  and  illustrated  an  account  of  General  Shields  and  his  family 
as  well  as  their  portraits  and  a  cut  of  his  statue.  Such  interest  dis 
played  in  his  and  their  behalf  is  worthy  of  commendation  and  speak 
well  for  the  spirit  and  tone  of  the  production,  which  is  first-class, 
edited  at  all  times  by  eminent  scholars  whose  aims  and  objects  are 
to  present  the  reading  public  with  a  first-class  Catholic  magazine,  in 
which  they  have  successed  admirably. 

Treasury  Department. 
Office   of   the    Second   Comptroller, 

Washington,  D.  C.,  Dec.  20,   1893. 
HON.  WILLIAM  H.  CONDON. 

My  Dear  Sir: — Yours,  with  a  check  for  $56,  balance  of  ex 
penses  of  banquet,  is  at  hand.  I  am  at  a  loss  how  to  write  you  in 
regard  to  your  noble-hearted  generosity  in  this  whole  affair,  as  well 
as  your  devotion  to  the  memory  of  General  Shields.  The  family 
of  General  Shields  ought  to  make  your  name  the  patron  saint  of 
their  household,  and  Irish-Americans  the  country  over  should  take 
you  as  a  type  of  warm-hearted  friendship.  I  am,  sir,  yours,  very 
sincerely, 

C.   H.  MANSUR. 


LIFE    OF    GEN.    SHIELDS.  367 


CHAPTER     XXVIII. 


Striking  Incidents  in  General  Shields'  Life — Eloquent  Tributes  Paid 
Him  by  Leading  Statesmen,  Bishops,  Scholars  and  Journalists — 
Interesting  Sketch  of  His  Life  by  Dr.  Onahan. 


One  of  General  Shields'  most  intimate  friends  says : 
Lincoln  he  looked  upon  as  one  of  his  best  friends  in 
America,  Stanton  and  Seward  as  his  greatest  enemies.  In 
my  previous  letter  I  told  you  of  the  General  having  been 
sent  for  to  go  to  Washington.  Lincoln  tried  his  best 
to  have  him  made  commander-in-chief  of  the  army  at 
the  time.  The  General  had  private  letters  from  Lincoln 
to  that  effect.  He  was  brought  to  Washington  for  that 
purpose.  You  will  remember  Lee  had  made  a  bold  ad 
vance  upon  Washington  and  there  was  panic  in  the  White 
House.  Lincoln  recommended  Shields  to  be  sent  for  as 
the  man  most  likely  to  save  the  cause.  He  was  ordered 
to  go  by  special  train,  and  though  one  o'clock  in  the 
morning  when  he  arrived,  he  found  the  Cabinet  still  sit 
ting.  Lincoln  met  him  first  and  told  him  he  had 
recommended  his  appointment  as  commander-in-chief,  and 
the  Cabinet  was  about  to  sanction  it.  He  was  asked  into 
the  room  where  the  Cabinet  was  sitting  and  asked  his 
views  as  to  the  probability  of  Lee's  taking  Washington. 
He  told  them  it  was  absurd.  "It  w7as  Lee's  first  mistake 
during  the  war."  He  pointed  out  a  plan  by  which  he 
could  be  cut  off  and  the  war  could  be  brought  to  an  end. 
They  saw  he  was  right,  but  as  soon  as  they  found  there 
was  no  danger  they  asked  him  to  retire.  In  less  than 
half  an  hour  Lincoln  came  to  him  and  said  the  Cabinet 
had  refused  to  sanction  his  appointment  on  the  grounds 
that  he  would  be  unpopular  with  the  officers  of  the  regu- 


368  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

lar  army  and  likely  to  create  trouble  for  the  administra 
tion.  Lincoln  then  advised  him  to  resign,  told  him  Stan- 
ton  was  his  bitter  opponent  and  would  lose  no  opportu 
nity  to  injure  him,  and  the  General  acted  on  his  advice. 
Lincoln  appointed  him  major-general,  and  through  Stan- 
ton's  influence  his  appointment  was  not  confirmed  by  the 
Republican  Senate.  The  most  friendly  relations  existed 
between  Lincoln  and  the  General.  Though  a  Democrat, 
he  would  have  given  him  any  position  within  his  (Lin 
coln's)  gift.  He  never  spoke  of  Lincoln  but  with  the 
deepest  respect.  He  never  mentioned  Stanton  or  Sew- 
ard  but  as  being  bitterest  and  most  relentless  enemies. 

When  he  came  to  Missouri  the  state  was  disfran 
chised  and  ruled  by  carpet-baggers  and  militia  men.  He 
took  up  the  cause  of  the  natives,  who  were  mostly  South 
ern  sympathizers.  He  made  a  few  very  able  speeches 
in  which  he  denounced  the  administration,  and  this  prob 
ably  was  the  cause  of  his  pension  being  withdrawn. 

He  told  me  of  his  quarrel  with  Lincoln.  I  remem 
ber  when  Lincoln's  biographers  published  something  in 
regard  to  it  not  very  creditable  to  the  General.  I  wanted 
him  to  reply  to  it.  He  said,  "No."  Lincoln  was  dead. 
He  would  write  nothing  that  would  reflect  discredit  on 
a  dead  man. 

The  General's  second  in  the  duel  was  blamed  for 
consenting  to  the  use  of  broadswords.  The  General 
was  a  fine  fencer  from  his  youth,  taught  the  art  by  a 
soldier  of  the  British  army  when  a  boy.  He  followed  it 
up  later.  He  taught  fencing  in  Toronto  "in  a  barroom." 
In  Washington  he  practiced  under  a  Frenchman,  of  whom 
he  told  some  very  amusing  stories,  and  his  second  was 
well  aware  of  the  General's  ability  to  defend  himself.  I 
heard  the  General,  himself  say  at  one  time  he  was  afraid 
of  no  man  in  America  with  a  sword.  The  duel,  if  it  had 
come  off,  would  have  ended  differently  from  what  Lin 
coln's  biographers  prophesied. 

In  the  General's  election  contest  for  the  Sixth  Con 
gressional  District  for  Missouri  he  was  elected  by  109 
majority  over  his  opponent,  VanHorn.  W^hile  the  Gen- 


LIFE     OF'   GEN.    SHIELDS.  369 

eral  was  canvassing  the  district  his  opponent  contented 
himself  with  going  around  to  the  carpet-bagger  officials 
and  assisting  them  in  their  work  of  fraud  and  disfran- 
chisement.  Notwithstanding  this  the  General  beat  him 
by  the  above  number  of  votes.  It  mattered  little,  how 
ever,  to  VanHorn.  When  the  returns  were  sent  to  the 
Secretary  of  State  for  a  certificate,  that  worthy  threw  out 
the  votes  of  Jackson  and  Platt  counties  and  the  Governor 
issued  a  certificate  to  VanHorn.  Thus  "majority  for 
VanHorn,  exclusive  of  Jackson  and  Platt,  64."  The  Gen 
eral  contested  the  validity  of  the  decision.  The  matter 
went  to  Washington.  A  committee  of  the  House  was 
appointed  to  examine  it.  The  majority,  of  course,  were 
Republicans.  It  was,  "Ask  my  brother  am  I  a  rogue?" 
The  majority  gave  the  seat  to  VanHorn,  but  awarded 
the  General  $5,000  compensation.  This  case  he. prepared 
with  great  care.  It  was  printed  in  pamphlet  form  and 
was  a  very  able  document." 

I  heard  General  Shields  say  that  William  H.  Seward, 
Secretary  of  State,  visited  him  at  Winchester,  was  driven 
over  the  field,  and  after  expressing  satisfaction  with  the 
results  of  the  battle  Seward  said:  "Now,  Shields,  you 
have  shown  in  this  war  what  you  are  capable  of.  Burn 
far  and  wide  around  you.  Strike  terror  in  the  rebels' 
hearts  and  you  will  be  the  hero  of  this  war  as  wrell  as  of 
Mexico."  To  which  Shields  replied:  "No.  I'll  not  re 
sort  to  any  uncivilized  warfare  and  send  my  name  down 
to  posterity  by  such  crimes  as  disgraced  Cromwell.  The 
curse  of  Cromwell  was  the  worst  curse  you  could  utter  in 
Ireland,  and  I'll  not  place  my  name  on  a  level  with  his 
by  atrocities  which  disgrace  civilization.  When  I  cap 
tured  Santa  Anna's  private  carriage  I  returned  it  to  him, 
and  other  private  property.  I  will  not  stoop  to  acts  be 
neath  the  dignity  of  a  soldier  for  promotion,  however  high." 
It  seems  that  Seward  had  no  use  for  General  Shields 
thenceforward  and  allied  himself  with  Stanton  to  ruin  his 
"military  career." 


370  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

REMINISCENCES      OF      AND      TRIBUTES      TO      GENERAL 

SHIELDS. 

"Vera  Cruz,  Cerro  Gordo,  Churubusco,  Chapultepec." 

Captain  John  M.  Toban,  a  veteran  of  the  Civil  War,  who  is  in 
the  group  at  the  unveiling,  in  an  article  in  Donohue's  Magazine, 
writes  as  follows: 

Many  years  after  the  close  of  the  Union  War,  I  was  riding  in  the 
train  from  Hartford  in  company  with  General  Shields.  I  said  to 
him:  "General,  you  never  joined  the  Fenians,  yet  we  young  men 
always  felt  you  were  ready  to  right  for  Ireland  if  the  opportunity 
offered." 

"I  would,"  he  responded  with  animation,  "but  I  will  tell  you  my 
own  experience  about  secret  movements  against  England.  Some 
time  after  the  Mexican  War  I  was  yet  in  commission  in  military 
service  and  stationed  at  St.  Louis.  The  adherents  of  the  young  Ire 
land  party  of  1848,  in  the  North,  brought  pressure  upon  the  War 
Department  to  grant  me  a  leave  of  absence.  1  visited  New  York,  and 
after  a  conference  with  the  leaders,  with  their  assistance  I  selected  two 
men,  each  unknown  to  the  other.  I  kept  them  in  different  quarters 
of  the  Astor  House  for  some  days,  training  them  verbally  on  what 
I  wanted  them  to  do  for  me  in  Ireland,  giving  each  a  different 
section.  I  desired  to  know  what  were  the  military  equipments  and 
arms  in  the  hands  of  the  patriots  organized  in  clubs  and  other 
bodies,  and  the  warlike  resources  attainable  in  the  country.  They 
returned  and  reported.  There  was  no  means  at  all  sufficient  with 
which  to  begin  a  war. 

"On  my  way  back  I  stopped  at  Washington  to  visit  the  War 
Department.  I  received  a  friendly  invitation  one  day  from  the 
British  Minister,  Napier,  an  Irishman,  you  know — with  whom  I  was 
on  friendly  personal  terms  before  I  went  to  Mexico — to  take  tea  with 
him  the  same  evening.  I  accepted.  After  supper  he  took  me  into  his 
library,  and,  patting  the  stars  of  a  major-general  on  my  shoulder,  he 
said:  'Jim,  no  Irishman  in  the  world  felt  prouder  of  your  winning 
those  stars  than  I ;  but  you  are  fortunate  in  the  kind  of  man  that 
in  my  person  represents  the  British  Government  in  this  country. 
I  want  you  to  continue  to  wear  in  honor  the  uniform  that  has 
covered  you  in  your  glorious  deeds  in  Mexico;  but,  my  dear  fellow, 
at  any  time  within  the  past  few  weeks  I  could  have  had  your  stars 
razed,  and  the  uniform  pulled  off  your  back,  had  I  raised  my  finger 
in  protest  against  your  conspiracy.' 

"Well,  I  was  astonished,  but  was  entirely  confounded  when  he 
told  me  of  my  whole  proceedings  in  New  York,  and  told  me  of 
everywhere  my  two  sworn  men  went  to  in  Ireland.  He  had  every 
thing  as  accurate  as  their  reports  to  me." 

TRIBUTE  TO  SHIELDS. 
REPRESENTATIVE  CANNON  OF  ILLINOIS. 

The  Mexican  Wrar  gave  to  the  United  States  a  great  empire,  rich 
in  soil  and  minerals.  The  eye  of  the  seer  cannot  cover,  or  the  tongue 
of  the  prophet  cannot  foretell,  the  importance  of  that  acquisition  to 
us  and  to  those  who  follow  after.  In  the  war  to  preserve  the 
IJnion,  the  fate  of  the  nation — aye,  more,  of  a  civilization — was  at 
.stake.  In  the  arbitrament  of  battle  General  Shields  was  a  con 
spicuous  figure  in  both  contests.  There  were  many  greater  states 
men,  greater  generals,  but  in  demeanor  and  personal  courage,  sup 
plemented  by  that  enthusiasm  and  leadership  in  action  that  com 
mand  the  admiration  and  touch  the  hearts  of  men,  perhaps  none 
excelled  him.  His  place  in  his  country's  annals  is  fixed  by  his 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  871 

military  service.  The  respect  and  love  of  the  people  of  Illinois,  after 
the  Mexican  War,  dictated  his  choice  as  United  States  Senator  from 
that  state  over  the  late  Sidney  Breese — one  of  the  builders  of  that 
commonwealth,  a  great  jurist  and  statesman,  the  impress  of  whose 
genius  and  ability  is  written  on  every  page  of  that  state's  history 
for  over  sixty  years.  The  greatest  tribute  that  Illinois  can  pay  to 
the  memory  of  General  Shields  is  paid  by  placing  his  statue  in  the 
Nation's  Capitol,  side  by  side  with  the  statues  of  Garfield,  Allen 
of  Ohio  and  Ethan  Allen,  Winthrop,  Trumbull,  Samuel  Adams, 
Muhlenberg,  King,  Kearney,  and  others.  These  statues  constitute  a 
part  of  the  history  of  the  country  in  stone  and  bronze.  Casting  our 
eyes  along  and  over  the  whole  history  of  the  country,  General  Shields, 
in  the  contests  of  his  day  and  generation,  is  fairly  typical  of  one  of 
the  forces  that  molded  the  Republic  in  its  formative  period,  and  that 
preserved  our  civilization  in  the  crucial  tests  of  battle. 

SENATOR   PALMER   OF   ILLINOIS. 

In  Illinois  General  Shields  was  the  peer  and  contemporary  of 
intellectual  giants.  He  was  the  associate  of  Douglas  and  Lincoln 
and  many  other  great  men,  a  foeman  worthy  of  the  steel  of  any  of 
them.  It  was  his  misfortune  to  differ  from  me  at  one  time  on  a 
great  political  question.  It  resulted  in  his  not  being  returned  again 
to  the  Senate  from  Illinois;  yet  we  continued  always  to  be  personal 
friends.  As  a  judge  his  intuitive  perception  of  justice  and  right 
made  him  the  very  refuge  of  the  oppressed  and  the  wronged.  It  is 
eminently  suggestive  and  proper  that  the  great  commonwealth  which 
honored  them  both  should  have  at  the  Capitol  the  statues  of  Lincoln 
and  Shields. 

REPRESENTATIVE  BLAND  OF  MISSOURI. 
General  Shields  became  a  citizen  of  Missouri  when  the  country 
was  in  the  throes  of  the  reconstruction  period.  Half  of  the  citizens 
-of  the  district  in  which  Carroll  County  is  situated  were  disfranchised. 
General  Shields  took  up  the  cause  of  the  people  and  advocated 
their  liberty.  His  character  as  a  patriotic  soldier,  loyal  citizen  and 
statesman  lent  charm  and  influence  to  the  canvass.  To  show  the 
magnanimity  of  the  character  of  this  great  soldier,  it  is  related  of 
him  that,  on  one  occasion,  one  of  his  admirers,  in  introducing  him  to 
the  people,  introduced  him  as  the  only  man  who  had  ever  conquered 
Stonewall  Jackson.  In  reply  to  that  General  Shields  modestly  stated 
that,  although  he  had  come  nearer,  perhaps,  than  any  other  soldier  to 
whipping  Stonewall  Jackson,  yet  the  truth  of  history  impelled  him 
to  say  that  Stonewall  Jackson  was  never  conquered. 

Kansas  City,   Mo.,  November  24,  1893. 
HON.  WILLIAM  H.  CONDON. 

Chicago  Shields  Monument   Commissioner. 

Honorable  and  Dear  Sir: — I  regret  that  my  health,  as  it  is  at 
present,  does  not  permit  of  undergoing  with  safety  the  fatigue  of  a 
long  journey.  Otherwise,  I  would  participate  with  great  pleasure  in 
the  ceremony  of  the  unveiling  at  Washington  of  the  statue  of  one  of 
my  dearest  personal  friends,  among  the  worthiest  and  most  beloved  of 
American  citizens,  the  late  General  James  Shields.  The  state  of 
Illinois  honors  itself  in  honoring  General  Shields.  No  brighter  ex 
ample  of  worthy  citizenship  ever  stood  on  pedestal  for  public  ad 
miration. 

Thanking  you,  honorable  dear  sir,  for  your  kind  invitation,  I 
am,  very  truly, 

Your  humble  servant, 

JOHN  T.   HOGAN. 
Bishop  of  Kansas  City. 


311  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

State   of   Missouri,    Executive    Department,   Jefferson    City, 

November  18,  1893. 
W.  H.  CONDON. 

Dear  Sir: — I  am  in  receipt  of  your  favor  of  the  i6th  inst.,  in 
viting  me  to  be  present  at  the  unveiling  of  the  statue*  of  General 
James  Shields  at  the  Capitol  in  Washington  on  December  6th.  This 
is  the  first  information  coming  to  me  of  this  event.  It  is  a  source 
of  very  profound  regret  that  i  have  engagements  already  made  that 
will  make  it  wholly  impracticable  for  me  to  go  to  Washington  to  attend 
these  ceremonies.  It  is  possible  I  may  be  able  to  have  the  lieutenant- 
governor  attend. 

General  Shields  died  a  citizen  of  this  state,  which  had  honored 
him  with  a  seat  in  the  United  States  Senate.  His  ashes  repose  i'n 
the  soil  of  Missouri.  It  is  greatly  to  the  credit  of  Illinois  that  her 
people  have  seen  proper  to  do  this  great  honor  to  his  memory.  But 
the  fame  he  won,  whether  martial  or  civic,  every  Missourian  claims 
a  share  in.  His  achievements  and  his  name  are  the  glory  alike  of 
Illinois  and  Missouri.  Not  only  so,  but  South  Carolina  and  Minne 
sota  are  likewise  entitled  to  share  in  the  luster  shed  by  him  on  the 
page  of  our  history.  I  regard  this  career,  a  description  of  which 
reads  like  a  romance,  as  one  of  the  most  interesting,  remarkable  and 
instructive  of  all  the  great  men  whose  names  adorn  our  history.  To 
the  young,  whether  native  or  foreign  born,  his  name  is  full  of  hope 
and  inspiration.  This  graceful  act,  done  by  the  people  of  Illinois,  will 
be  appreciated  by  the  people  of  this  state.  He  was  yours  and  ours. 
You  do  well  to  call  honoring  marble  from  its  cavern  bed,  chisel  it 
in  form  and  shape,  and  set  it  in  noble  company  at  the  Capitol  of  the 
Nation,  there  to  perpetuate  the  glory  of  his  achievements.  You  honor 
him  in  marble  or  bronze;  we  will  set  a  vigil  over  his  grave  to  guard 
his  ashes.  Thus  his  great  name  will  be  another  bond  linking  the 
sovereign  states  of  Illinois  and  Missouri,  both  of  which  he  loved 
and  served  so  well. 

Respectfully, 

WM.  J.  STONE. 

State  of  Missouri,  Executive  Department,  Jefferson  City, 

November  22,  1893. 
WILLIAM  H.  CONDON,  Esq. 

Dear  Sir: — I  have  requested  United  States  Senator  F.  M.  Cockrell 
to  represent  this  state  at  the  unveiling  of  the  statue  to  General  Shields. 
I  suggest  that  you  communicate  with  him,  so  that  he  may  understand 
the  arrangements  for  the  day. 

Respectfully, 

WM.  J.  STONE. 

There  was  once  an  affair  of  honor  in  which  Jeffer 
son  Davis  was  one  of  the  parties.  The  General  acted  as 
a  second  for  Davis'  opponent.  It  originated  from  a 
a  speech  made  by  a  Northern  Senator,  in  which  he  accused 
a  regiment  of  co\vardice  of  which  Davis  wras  the  colonel. 
The  President  having  heard  of  the  duel  threatened  to  have 
the  parties  thereto  arrested  unless  they  gave  their  word 
of  honor  not  to  proceed  with  the  quarrel,  which  they  did. 


LIFE    OF    GEN.    SHIELDS.  373 

Then  a  second  quarrel  arose  between  General  Shields 
and  the  colonel  who  represented  Davis.  It  arose  in  this 
manner.  General  Shields  exerted  himself  to  the  utmost 
to  make  peace  between  the  two  Senators,  but  Davis'  sec 
ond  seemed  bound  to  insist  on  the  duel  coming  off,  when 
Shields  said  to  him,  "I  sometimes  respect  the  man  who 
is  prodigal  of  his  own  blood,  but  I  have  a  damned  mean 
opinion  of  the  man  who  is  prodigal  of  the  blood  of  an 
other."  The  result  was  a  letter  asking  an  apology,  which 
was  not  replied  to. 

Nearly  a  week  after  this  the  General,  while  in  the 
'Senate,  was  touched  on  the  back  by  a  hand,  and  turning 
round  saw  his  friend,  "Davis'  second."  The  gentleman' 
quietly  asked  him  out.  They  went  straight  to  the  colo 
nel's  apartments.  On  the  table  of  the  room  they  entered 
there  were  two  dueling  pistols  and  two  cups  of  coffee. 
The  colonel  told  the  General  to  choose  which  he  would 
take.  The  General  laughed  and  said  he  would  try  the 
coffee  first.  They  shook  hands  and  spent  a  very  happy 
night  together.  With  the  General's  assistance  the  colonel 
got  an  appointment  afterwards  in  California,  which  he 
held  till  his  death,  brought  about  by  congestive  fever. 

Irish   World. 

GENERAL  SHIELDS. 

It  is  not  the  language  of  empty  declamation,  but  of  truth,  to 
say  that  of  all  nations  on  this  round  earth  none  has  evinced  more 
versatility  of  talent,  more  brilliancy  of  genius,  greater  generosity  of 
disposition,  or  more  of  dash  and  enthusiasm  in  the  execution  of  what 
ever  it  has  set  its  heart  on  than  the  nation  called  Irish.  None! 
On  the  battlefield,  at  the  bar,  on  the  bench,  in  the  pulpit,  in  the 
Senate,  on  the  stage,  in  song,  pottry,  literature  and  athletics,  Ire 
land's  preeminence  is  recognized.  Take  up  the  atlas.  Look  at  that 
speck  in  the  bosom  of  the  Atlantic  Ocean — up  in  the  northwest  of 
the  eastern  hemisphere.  It  is  like  an  emerald  pebble  in  a  huge  tub 
of  water.  It  is  beautiful  but  insignificant.  How  despicable  does  it 
appear  by  the  side  of  that  colossal  empire  called  Russia!  How 
diminutive  even  by 'comparison  with  one  of  our  states  of  the  Great 
West!  If  quantity  is  the  motto  there  is  no  use  going  to  market; 
but  if  quality  is  sought,  and  quality  alone,  the  most  fastidious  can 
be  satisfied. 

That  gem  of  the  sea  burns  with  an  unquenchable  ardor  and 
blazes  with  a  genius  that  has  lit  up  all  civilization. 


374  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

A  thousand  years  ago  Ireland  was  the  nursery  of  learning  and 
the  school  of  art  and  science.  Students  from  Gaul  and  Saxon  Land, 
from  Italy  and  Germany,  flocked  thither,  in  a  continuous  stream,  to 
finish  their  education.  Then  Ireland  was  an  independent  nation  and 
her  proud  flag  waved  over  a  free  people.  All  this  is  changed.  But 
Ireland  is  still  gifted  by  Nature  as  she  was  then.  Gifted  in  her  sons 
as  well  as  in  her  soil.  Where  is  the  land  that  has  not  been  enriched 
by  her  intellectual  wealth?  England  rejoices  in  her  Wellington, 
France  in  her  MacMahon,  Austria  in  her  Nugent,  Spain  in  her 
O'Donnell,  and  America  in  her  Montgomerys,  her  Jacksons,  her 
MacDonoughs,  and  her  Sheridans. 

To  all  these  countries  Ireland  has  given  prime  ministers,  presi 
dents,  military  chieftains,  and  statesmen. 

The  most  illustrious  man  that  ever  opened  his  mouth  in  the 
British  Parliament  was  Edmund  Burke.  In  orators  no  land  is  more 
prolific.  The  dying  speech  of  Emmet  is  alone  of  its  kind.  Of  Cur- 
ran,  Grattan,  Shiel,  on  the  other  side  of  the  water,  and  Calhoun  on 
this,  it  is  unnecessary  to  say  anything.  The  bare  mention  of  their 
names  is  enough.  "The  best  comedy  on  the  English  stage — the 
'School  for  Scandal' — and  the  best  speech  ever  delivered  in  the  English 
House  of  Commons — that  of  the  impeachment  of  Warren  Hastings — 
are  Sheridan's."  So  Lord  Byron  thought.  Daniel  O'Connell  was 
the  most  potent  of  open-air  orators  that  ever  voiced  their  views  in 
the  British  Isles;  and  who  more  than  that  other  Irishman — Denis 
Kearney — the  Sand-Lot  Orator  of  California — has  shown  his  ability 
to  stir  the  great  multitude  in  this  New  World?  The  leading  wits 
of  the  last  century  were  Irishmen.  The  greatest  "Falstaff"  that  ever 
appeared  on  the  boards  was  Quinn,  the  finest  "Shylock"  was  Mack- 
lin,  and  the  grandest  "Othello"  was  Barry.  Of  Macklin,  Pope,  the 
poet,  said: 

"This  is  the  Jew 
That  Shakespeare  drew." 

Barry's  speech  before  the  Senate  was  frequently  encored — a  thing 
hardly  ever  known  in  the  regular  drama.  Such  was  the  charm  of 
his  voice  and  the  unapproachable  grace  of  his  gesture.  At  one  time, 
when  the  Duke  says,  "I  think  this  speech  would  win  my  daughter,  too," 
the  applause  rose  to  a  tempest  and  the  audience  positively  would 
not  permit  the  play  to  go  on  till  Barry  had  recited  Othello's 
apology  a  third  time!  The  two  stars  before  the  footlights  now  are 
McCullough  and  Barrett.  Charles  O'Conor  stands  at  the.  head  of 
the  American  bar,  Judge  Kelley  is  the  Nestor  of  the  House  of  Rep 
resentatives,  and  Henry  C.  Carey  is,  confessedly,  the  most  eminent 
man  in  political  economy  to-day  in  the  English  language.  Byron 
called  Moore  "the  poet  of  all  circles  and  the  idol  of  his  own." 

All  this  is  glorification.  But  is  not  the  glorification  founded  in 
justice?  Do  we  ask  for  Ireland  more  than  her  meed?  Yet  we 
would  not  be  understood  as  claiming  for  the  Irish  a  monopoly  of 
all  that  is  truly  great  and  noble  in  this  world  or  insisting  that 
everything  beneath  even  this  dazzling  brilliancy  is  made  of  solid 


LIFE    OF    GEN.    SHIELDS.  375 

goodness.  Every  nation  has  its  peculiar  excellence.  Germany  is 
philosophic,  France  has  flashed  light  on  the  politics  of  the  age,  Italy 
has  carved  her  name  high  up  in  art,  and  England  is  distinguished 
as  the  foremost  of  utilitarians.  And  so  on.  The  "universal  Yankee 
Nation"  beats  the  world  in  inventions.  Ireland  has  not  a  little  to 
gain  from  association  with  other  lands.  (And  to  show  that  the  con 
verse  is  true  it  is  only  necessary  to  point  to  Fulton,  the  inventor 
of  the  steamboat,  and  McCormick,  the  inventor  of  the  reaping  ma 
chine,  both  of  whom  Ireland  has  contributed  to-  America.)  But  the 
acceptance  of  this  truth  does  not  detract  from  the  claim  put  forward 
in  her  behalf. 

And  now  General  Shields,  who  is  neither  one  of  Ireland's  latest 
or  least  contributions  to  the  list  of  Columbia's  historic  names,  comes 
forward  for  recognition.  A  soldier,  a  legislator,  a  jurist,  and  an 
orator,  he  was  among  the  first  in  peace  as  well  as  the  first  in  war, 
and  illustrated  in  his  personal  character,  perhaps  more  than  any  other 
one  man  of  his  time,  the  versatility  of  the  race  from  which  he 
sprang. 

The  hero  of  two  wars  and  a  score  of  battles,  the  wounds  which 
he  received  therein,  and  which  scarred  his  body  forever,  proved  him 
to  be  a  soldier  that  sought  rather  than  shunned  the  post  of  danger. 
Shields  it  was  who  first  planted  the  stars  and  stripes  in  the  City  of 
Mexico.  Shields  it  was  whom  Scott  entrusted  to  hold  in  check  the 
main  army  of  Santa  Anna.  Shields  it  was — the  first  man  and  the 
last  man — that  ever  successfully  crossed  swords  with  the  redoubtable 
Stonewall  Jackson.  Is  not  this  enough  to  entitle  him  to  a  high 
niche  among  the  military  men  of  America?  The  Washington  poli 
ticians  who  "ran"  the  military  machine  seventeen  years  ago  did  their 
spiteful  best  to  ignore  him.  "Sometimes  our  very  graces  are  our 
enemies,"  says  Shakespeare.  The  politicians  were  afraid  the  victor 
of  Stonewall  Jackson  would  eclipse  some  of  their  epauletted  pets. 
Some  of  them  fellows — 

"That  never   set   a   squadron   in   the   field 
Nor  a   division   of  a  battle  knew 
More  than  a  spinster." 

But  the  writer  of  impartial  history,  who  will  have  no  chums  to 
promote,  no  personal  interests  to  subserve,  no  grudge  to  £eed,  who 
will  labor  only  to  gather  facts,  and  whose  special  ambition  it  will  be 
"to  hold  the  mirror  up  to  nature,"  will  relate  to  posterity  that 
James  Shields  deserved  well  of  the  Republic,  whilst  his  pen  will 
refuse  to  record  even  the  names  of  the  clique  of  small  natures  whose 
baleful  shadow  tried  to  throw  him  into  the  shade  in  the  day  of  their 
evil  littleness. 

William  J.  Onahan,  L.L.D.,  has  been  a  prominent  citizen  of 
Chicago  for  twoscore  years.  His  influence  in  Catholic  and  Irish 
circles 'has  been  second  to  none.  As  an  organizer  of  societies  and 
movements  calculated  to  benefit  his  race  and  creed,  as  well  as  citizens 
of  all  classes,  he  has  had  great  success.  With  the  lamented  General 


376  LIFE     OF     GEN,   SHIELDS. 

Mulligan  in  early  days  he  gathered  around  him  many  of  the  brightest 
minds  in  the  city,  and  in  temperance  movements  he  has  always  been 
a  great  power  for  good.  He  was  instrumental  in  calling  the  con 
vention  in  Chicago  in  1879  which  resulted  in  establishing  on  a 
permanent  basis  two  large  colonies  of  Catholics  in  Minnesota  and 
Nebraska,  and  has  been  the  means  of  inducing  Catholics  to  buy  and 
improve  over  a  hundred  thousand  acres  in  the  West.  I  had  the  honor 


WILLIAM    J.    ONAHAN,    LL.    D. 

of  acting  as  secretary  of  that  convention,  at  which  Archbishop  Ire 
land,  Bishop  Spalding,  Bishop  Hogan,  Father  Riordan,  now  Arch 
bishop  of  San  Francisco,  and  many  other  eminent  divines,  as  well  as 
John  Boyle  O'Reily,  Hon.  Patrick  H.  Collins,  General  Donaghue, 
Dillon  O'Brien  and  Patrick  H.  Kelly  of  St.  Paul,  Andrew  Kelly  of 
Minneapolis,  John  Lawler  of  Prairie  Du  Chien,  Judge  Moran  and 
many  more  perfected  an  organization  which  successfully  carried  on 
the  work  of  colonization.  Volumes  have  been  filled  with  Mr.  Onahan's 
views  on  the  subject  in  Catholic  magazines  and  newspapers  at  home 


LIFE    OF    GEN.    SHIELDS.  377 

and  abroad.  In  the  thirty  years  that  I  have  had  the  honor  of  his 
acquaintance  he  has  by  tongue  and  pen  richly  earned  the  title  of 
Defender  of  the  Faith.  In  every  undertaking,  from  the  building  of 
churches,  schools,  hospitals,  inaugurating  Catholic  summer  schools, 
erection  of  monuments  to  missionaries  and  patriots,  to  the  provid 
ing  of  Catholic  and  Irish  literature  for  the  masses,  he  has  been  a 
leader.  His  influence  as  a  member  of  the  board  of  the  Chicago 
library  was  very  creditable  and  highly  beneficial.  As  an  official  he 
has  been  elected  frequently  to  responsible  positions  of  trust  and  al 
ways  proved  faithful.  While  comptroller  of  the  city  of  Chicago  its 
credit  rose  higher  than  it  had  been  for  many  years,  and  the  con 
fidence  that  the  public  has  in  his  wisdom  and  integrity  is  evident 
in  the  increase  of  deposits  in  the  Home  Savings  Bank  of  Chicago 
since  he  has  been  its  first  vice-president  and  virtual  manager. 

No  man  in  Chicago  or  the  Great  West  has  greater  respect  or 
more  friends,  and  it  was  a  source  of  pride  and  extreme  gratification 
to  his  host  of  friends  when  His  Holiness  Leo  XIII  conferred  the  title 
of  Count  upon  him. 

A  quarter  of  a  century  ago  he  gave  me  the  photograph,  which  I 
have  reproduced  without  his  knowledge  or  consent,  and  I  have  taken 
the  liberty  of  saying  this  of  him  because  he  was  one  of  the  gentlemen 
whom  General  Shields  most  admired,  and  no  life  of  the  hero  could 
be  written  without,  referring  to  his  friend,  Onahan,  under  whose 
auspices  he  lectured  in  Chicago  and  through  whom  many  courtesies 
were  shown  the  General.  , 

Hon.  William  J.  Onahan  prepared  for  The  Observer  the  following 
interesting  anecdotes  of  the  late  General  James  Shields.  One  of  them, 
at  least,  throws  a  new  light  on  recent  American  history: 

Few  public  men  in  the  United  States  had  a  more  varied  or  more 
unique  career  in  the  public  service  than  General  James  Shields,  the 
Senator  from  three  states. 

An  Irish  immigrant  to  this  country  in  the  early  thirties,  he 
commenced  his  career  in  Illinois  as  a  school  teacher,  studied  law 
according  to  the  primitive  conditions  and  opportunities  of  the  period. 
Swiftly  winning  recognition  by  his  ability  and  character,  he  was 
successively  elected  or  appointed  auditor  of  state,  judge  of  the  Su 
preme  Court,  commissioner  of  the  general  land  office,  governor  of 
Oregon;  and  after  his  brilliant  service  in  the  Mexican  War  was 
chosen  United  States  Senator  for  Illinois,  the  associate  of  Senator 
Douglas,  the  "Little  Giant,"  with  whom  he  stood  on  terms  of 
warm  political  and  personal  friendship. 

Not  a  few  incidents  of  his  senatorial  career  would  be  interesting, 
especially  when  we  consider  the  period  during  which  he  served  and 
the  remarkable  men  who  were  then  in  the  Senate  and  House  of 
Representatives — Clay,  Webster,  Calhoun,  Douglas,  Benton,  Breck- 
enridge,  Lincoln  and  others  of  national  and,  subsequently,  of  his 
toric  renown. 

But  it  is  a  couple  of  incidents  occurring  in  a  subsequent  period 
I  set  out  to  narrate. 

A  few  words,  however,  will  complete  the  brief  epitome  of  General 
Shields'  public  career. 

Failing  of  reelection  in  Illinois,  by  reason  of  well-known  political 
changes,  the  General  emigrated  to  Minnesota,  then  a  territory.  He 
gathered  about  him  a  following  and  established  the  first  Irish  colony 


378  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

in  the  new  territory,  in  the  vicinity  of  Faribault,  now  acknowledged 
to  be  one  of  the  wealthiest  and  most  prosperous  of  the  numerous 
Irish  colonies  in  the  state  of  Minnesota. 

On  the  admission  of  the  territory  as  a  state,  General  Shields 
was  elected  one  of  the  two  first  Senators. 

As  in  Illinois,  a  like  result  and  fortune  befell  his  political  aspira 
tions  and  from  a  like  cause  he  was  not  reflected.  At  the  end  of  his 
term  he  drifted  out  to  California,  and  settled  there  for  a  time;  indeed, 
it  is  said  that  he  would  surely  have  been  elected  to  the  Senate  from 
that  state  also,  had  he  prolonged  his  stay  there.  But  the  Civil  War 
broke  out,  and  like  a  war  horse  "sniffing  the  battle  from  afar"  he 
was  quickly  on  the  scene  and  in  the  service. 

His  usual  military  good  fortune,  the  result  of  his  skill  and  valor, 
attended  him  in  his  campaign  against  Stonewall  Jackson  in  the 
valley  of  Virginia.  He  whipped  the  hitherto  redoubtable  and  in 
vulnerable  Southern  commander.  Shields  was  the  only  Northern 
or  Union  general  who  achieved  this  unique  distinction. 

It  was  following  this  event,  which  gave  great  heart  to  the  Union 
cause  and  naturally  immense  satisfaction  to  President  Lincoln,  that 
the  curious  incident  I  am  about  to  relate  is  said  to  have  occurred. 

This  was  no  less  than  the  tender  to  General  Shields  of  the 
command  of  the  army  of  the  Potomac. 

I  am  not  aware  that  this  fact  (and  I  assume  it  to  be  a  fact)  was 
ever  before  published. 

My  authority  for  the  statement  is  no  other  than  General  Shields 
himself.  I  had  it  from  his  own  lips  when  sitting  at  my  own  fire 
side,  on  the  occasion  of  one  of  his  visits  to  Chicago  long  after  the  war. 

As  I  recall  the  story,  the  General  had  gone  over  again  the 
circumstances  of  his  encounter  with  Jackson  and  the  defeat  which 
sent  the  hitherto  irresistible  "Stonewall"  whirling  up  (or  down)  the 
valley  and  the  joy  and  elation  the  news  of  this  victory  caused  in 
Washington  and  throughout  the  North. 

Shortly  after  this  event,  the  General  said,  Secretary  Seward  came 
to  his  camp  one  evening  and  had  an  interview  with  him  at  head 
quarters. 

The  Secretary  of  State  announced  that  he  came  from  the  Presi 
dent  to  thank  General  Shields  for  the  important  and  successful 
campaign  he,  the  General,  had  conducted  and  especially  for  his 
crowning  victory. 

Moreover,  President  Lincoln  had  empowered  Mr.  Seward  to 
tender  to  General  Shields  the  command  of  the  Army  of  the  Potomac; 
and  this,  for  reasons  of  military,  as  well  as  political  policy. 

That  great  army  had  not  been  successful,  its  command  had  been 
the  shuttlecock  of  emergencies,  but  only  misfortune  and  defeat  had 
attended  the  various  changes. 

General  Shields  had  demonstrated  high  military  capacities,  he 
had  been  successful,  and  he  was  free  from  military  cliques  and  political 
following — hence  the  President  was  drawn  to  him  as  the  man  for  the 
emergency. 

And  moreover,  as  General  Shields  was  an  Irishman  of  foreign 
birth,  he  could  not  consequently  become  a  factor  in  national  poli 
tics  as  a  possible  candidate  or  rival  for  the  presidency  in  the  event 
of  a  crowning  successful  military  campaign.  Such,  in  substance, 
was  the  statement  made  by  Mr.  Seward  to  General  Shields  as  subse 
quently  related  by  the  latter. 

Why,  then,  was  the  magnificent  tender  and  temptation  not 
quickly  accepted?  Because,  at  the  same  time,  the  purpose  and  poli 
cies  of  the  President,  or  the  Government,  to  bring  about  emancipation 
of  the  negro  race  was  indicated  or  announced.  Perhaps  the  Emanci 
pation  Proclamation  was  then  under  consideration. 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  379 

This  was  the  obstacle,  this  the  barrier  that  moved  General 
Shields  to  decline  the  tender  of  this  important  command.  He  was 
for  fighting  it  out  on  other  lines  without  regard  to  the  negro.  The 
interview  was,  of  course,  confidential  in  its  character,  and  the  tender 
of  command  made  an  affair  of  absolute  secrecy.  And  so  nothing  was 
known  or  heard  of  it  at  the  time.  Such,  in  a  general  way,  was  the 
substance  of  General  Shields'  account  of  this  interesting  episode  of 
the  Civil  War.  I  do  not  pretend  that  I  am  giving  ipsissima  verba 
the  exact  language  employed  by  the  General  in  narrating  the  inci 
dent,  but  as  to  the  tender  of  the  command  referred  to,  and  of  the 
reasons  adduced  for  making  it,  as  well  as  the  reason  for  declining — 
I  am  certain  of  the  substantial  accuracy  of  my  account,  at  least  as 
to  the  essential  particulars. 

Others  have  heard  this  same  story  from  the  lips  of  the  General. 
A  well-known  clergyman  of  this  city,  a  warm,  personal  friend  of 
General  Shields,  heard  it  told  on  the  occasion  I  refer  to;  and  I  am 
pretty  sure  had  heard  it  before  or  subsequently,  at  his  own  table, 
where  the  General  was  often  a  welcome  guest. 

A  few  words  as  to  the  subsequent  career  of  General  Shields  may 
not  be  amiss,  to  complete  this  paper. 

Shortly  after  the  campaign  referred  to,  in  which  Shields  was 
wounded,  he  resigned  his  command.  This  it  may  be  surmised  pro 
ceeded  partly  because  of  his  wounds  and  from  the  failure  to  obtain 
the  richly  earned  promotion:  and  partly  perhaps  from  dissatisfaction 
with  the  policy  at  Washington. 

The  General  retired  to  a  farm  near  Carrollton,  Mo.,  where  he 
married  and  "turned  his  sword  into  a  ploughshare."  In  the  seventies 
he  was  chosen  United  States  Senator  from  that  state  to  fill  a  short 
term.  Following  this  he  was  occasionally  heard  on  the  lecture 
platforms  in  the  West.  He  did  not  long  survive  his  latest  senatorial 
service,  being  stricken  by  paralysis  while  on  a  visit  to  a  convent  in 
Ottumwa,  Iowa,  where  he  died. 

I  am  not  writing  a  biographical  sketch.  I  set  out  to  write  an 
incident  or  two  in  General  Shields'  career.  His  services  in  the 
Senate  and  on  the  battlefield  deserve  a  far  more  elaborate  and  ap 
preciative  eulogy  than  is  possible  in  a  running,  off-hand  sketch 
such  as  this. 

WILLIAM  J.   ONAHAN. 


CHAPTER     XXIX. 


My  Interesting  Friend  of  the  Confederate  Army — Efforts  to  Erect 
Statues  to  General  Shields  and  Frances  E.  Willard  in  Illinois — 
Appeal  to  the  Ladies — Opposition  of  Some"  of  the  Press — Indif 
ference  of  Judges  and  Opposition  of  South  Park  Commissioners 
— Manly  Indorsement  by  Colonel  John  F.  Finerty  in  The 
Citizen,  and  Favorable  Notice  by  the  Milwaukee  Catholic  Citi 
zen — Hon.  Wm.  H.  Harper's  Broad  Americanism. 


On  a  Sunday  afternoon  in  April,  1899,  in  a  hotel 
at  Columbus,  Ohio,  while  there  writing  this  work,  and 
learning  of  R.  D.  McCarter's  service  under  Shields,  I 


380  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

read  to  him  from  my  scrapbook  General  Gates'  speech 
in  Congress  on  the  reception  of  the  statue,  and  in  the 
course  of  the  conversation  Veteran  McCarter  said  that 
he  saw  the  Hash  of  the  mortar  that  threw  the  shell  that 
broke  Shields'  arm.  A  gentleman  sitting  near  us  ex 
tended  his  hand  to  me  as  soon  as  Mr.  McCarter  walked 
away,  and  said,  "Friend,  I  want  to  shake  hands  with  you." 
I  grasped  his  hand  cordially  and  said,  "I  thank  you  for 
your  courtesy  and  am  pleased  to  know  you."  He  men 
tioned  his  name  and  gave  me  his  card,  which  unfortunately 
is  lost,  and  which  showed  he  Avas  a  commercial  traveler 
from  the  South.  He  said :  "I  heard  your  friend  say  that 
he  saw  the  flash  of  the  mortar  that  threw  the  shell  a  frag 
ment  of  which  broke  General  Shields'  arm.  It  was  our 
battery  that  fired  the  shell — Caskie's  Battery.  When  you 
go  to  Richmond  call  on  Dr.  Hunter  Maguire  and  Rev. 
—  Smith,  who  is  the  adjutant  of  our  Robert  E.  Lee's 
Camp,  and  they  will  entertain  you  royally,  and  they  will 
relate  to  you  much  that  you  will  be  interested  in  about 
Lee,  as  they  were  on  his  staff.  We  all  liked  Shields  for 
his  record  in  Mexico  and  didn't  care  to  rub  against  him 
very  hard,  but  as  soon  as  he  left  the  valley  we  went  back 
and  chased  the  others  out  of  it."  I  regret  that  I  was 
prevented  from  calling  on  the  gentlemen  named  and  that 
I  never  met  my  informant  again. 

On  June  14,  1899,  in  the  Chicago  Record,  a  correspondent  of  that 
paper — who  is  writing  up  art  in  Paris  and  who  exhibited  such  monstrosi 
ties  on  the  Lake  Front  in  groups  of  giantesses  that  for  shame's  sake 
and  to  avoid  shocking  lookers  on  they  were  destroyed — wrote  the 
following  article,  deriding  and  ridiculing  real  artists  and  their  works: 

PUBLIC    MONUMENTS. 

"I  hope  most  sincerely  that  the  Lake  Front  Park  may  not  be  in 
vaded  by  an  army  of  portrait  statues.  What  a  depressing  display 
we  could  soon  bring  together  there.  Are  not  we  moderns  ugly 
enough  in  our  everyday  costumes  without  perpetuating  them  and 
setting  them  up  in  rows  like  clothing  dummies?  Yet  this  is  what 
we  may  well  fear  if  the  park  commissioners  let  down  the  bars.  There 
is  a  touch  of  humor  in  the  first  combination  of  candidates  for  this 
privilege  which  suggests  the  grotesque  possibilities  of  the  future. 

"The  newspapers  explain  who  General  Shields  was,  which  may  or 
may  not  prove  his  need  of  a  public  statue,  and  then  we  are  assured 
that  only  the  best  sculpture  is  to  be  used — a  reproduction  of  the  fig 
ure  in  the  National  Sculpture  Gallery  at  the  Capitol.  If  this  means 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  381 

the  bronze  figure  of  General  Shields  which  I  saw  there  three  years 
ago,  the  procession  would  be  headed  by  one  of  the  most  common 
place  things  in  all  that  collection  of  nondescripts.  At  the  time  of  my 
visit  there  were  not  more  than  two  or  three  good  statues  in  the  gal 
lery,  and  but  one — Daniel  French's  General  Cass — which  could  be 
called  a  great  work  of  art.  There  are  worse  looking  figures  there, 
to  be  sure,  than  the  General  Shields,  for  they  have  Vinnie  Ream's 
Lincoln  with  them  still,  and  other  amateurish  performances,  but  the 
professional  dexterity  shown  in  the  modeling  of  the  figure  of  the 
gallant  Irishman  but  emphasizes  its  utter  lack  of  sculptural  feeling. 
It  is  a  neatly  whittled  effigy,  neither  better  nor  worse  than  the  familiar 
Scotts  and  Bobby  Burnses  of  our  tobacco  stores — only  a  little  more 
precisely  done. 

"Miss  Willard  certainly  merits  a  dignified  memorial  for  her  splen 
did  work,  her  inspiring  faith  and  her  loyal  love  of  humanity,  but 
with  all  her  courage  she  was  not  an  obtrusive  woman.  It  was  her 
work  and  no  native  aggressiveness  which  brought  her  so  constantly 
into  public  view.  She  who  addressed  thousands  and  wrote  her  let 
ters  to  all  the  world  was  happiest  in  her  home  circle  and  with  her  few 
close  friends.  I  feel  that  setting  her  up  there  upon  our  lonesome 
Lake  Front  with  only  Logan  and  Shields  as  champions  and  compan 
ions  would  be  most  unsympathetic  treatment.  It  is  true  that  she  might 
be  joined  soon  by  Dewey  and  Aguinaldo,  Confucius,  Moses  and 
Richard  Harding  Davis,  and  ultimately — who  knows? — by  Alderman 
Coughlin  and  Johnny  Powers;  but  a  crowd  is  not  always  company, 
and  even  well-executed  statues  raised  by  an  admiring  constituency 
may  not  suffice  to  make  a  public  place  seem  homelike. 

"But  poor  Miss  Willard  in  whitewashed  bronze — to  symbolize 
purity — standing  alone  and  forlorn  upon  Michigan  avenue,  with  brow 
bare^l  to  winter's  bleak  blasts  and  summer's  scorching  rays,  the  ob 
ject  of  the  idle  curiosity  of  strangers  and  of  the  jests  of  cabmen — the 
idea  seems  to  me  not  only  incongruous,  but  pitiful.  We  raise  statues 
to  honor  our  illustrious  dead.  Let  us  honor  them  still  further  by 
placing  these  tributes  fitly  and  where  they  may  mean  something." 

It  had  been  suggested  if  color  was  a  vital  point  that  the  statue  of 
Miss  Willard  could  be  kept  white  with  paint,  which  afforded  this 
scoffer  a  chance  to  exhibit  his  cheap  wit  by  writing  about  "white 
washed  bronze"  for  her  and  by  saying  that  if  she  were  lonely  with 
Logan  and  Shields  she  might  be  joined  by  two  disrputable  aldermen 
and  others. 

It  is  a  wonder  he  omitted  the  names  of  noted  courtesans,  and  if 
he  did  not  probably  his  employer's  sheet  would  have  published  their 
names. 

Such  comparisons  were  sacrilegious;  no  gentleman  would  have 
made  them,  and  no  paper  worthy  of  patronage  would  have  endorsed 
them  by  publishing  them. 

I  prevailed  upon  a  tedder  for  the  Willard  statue  to  erect  a  dupli 
cate  of  it  at  Evanston,  111.,  where  Miss  Willard  is  buried,  for  less  than 
the  amount  appropriated  for  the  Washington  statue — and  sums  guar 
anteed  me — but  the  three  women  commissioners  refused  to  Pward  him 
the  contract,  preferring  to  patronize  a  living  woman  rather  than  honor 
a  dead  one  by  having  two  faultless  statues  erected  in  her  honor.  Yet 
we  hear  a  great  deal  from  women  about  narrowness  and  man's  selfish 
ness,  etc. 

In  the  preamble  to  mv  bill  for  the  Willard  statue,  passed  in 
1809,  I  paid  a  tribute  to  Miss  Willard  which  will  always  remain  in 
the  statutes  of  Illinois.  I  did  likewise  in  my  Shields'  statue  bill,  and 
if_no  statues  are  erected  to  them  in  Illinois,  at  least  mv  encomiums 
will  remain  ;_but  people  will  wonder  why  Illinois  has  nothing  visible  on 
its^  borders,  in  any  city,  to  testify  to  its  love  for  these  greatest  of  its 
citizens. 


3S2  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

MY    APPEAL    FOR   A    CHICAGO    OR    EVANSTON    STATUE 
FOR   MISS    WILLARD. 

Dear  Madam: — Having  noticed  the  interest  you  have  taken  in 
the  Woman's  Athletic  Association,  I  cherish  the  hope  that  you,  also, 
have  at  heart  everything  that  enures  to  the  honor  of  your  sex,  and 
therefore  will  be  interested  in  my  project  to  erect  on  Lake  Front  Park 
a  beautiful  bronze  statue  of  the  late — noblest  of  women — Frances  E. 
Willard. 

I  induced  the  Legislature  last  winter  to  decide  that  she  is  worthy 
of  national  commemoration  and  to  appropriate  $9,000  for  a  bronze 
statue  of  her,  to  be  placed  in  Statuary  Hall  in  the  Capitol  in  Wash 
ington,  with  those  of  Generals  Shields,  Washington,  Lafayette,  and 
other  immortals. 

A  duplicate  of  that  proposed  statue  can  be  purchased  for  $6,000, 
and  ihe  ladies  of  Chicago  and  Evanston,  if  united,  could  easily  raise 
that  sum.  I  would  be  pleased  to  confer  with  ladies  so  disposed  at 
any  time,  and  since  this  should  be  woman's  work  I  sincerely  hope 
you  will  adopt  it  as  yours. 

Great  nations  keep  alive  the  memory  of  those  who  by  signal 
services  have  made  an  impress  on  the  times  in  which  they  lived. 
They  sing  the  praises  of  those  noted  for  sublime  thoughts  and  noble 
deeds  on  field,  forum  or  platform,  radiant  with  genius  and  virtue  and 
rich  in  heavenly  treasures  purchased  by  self-sacrifice,  fortitude  and 
valor  which  has  shed  luster  on  the  land  for  which  they  toiled,  suf 
fered  or  died. 

Their  lives  adorn  the  pages  of  history,  their  names  are  house 
hold  words  in  the  homes  of  the  true  and  the  brave,  and  heavenward 
are  reared  the  sculptured  stone  or  immortal  bronze,  that  all  may 
catch  inspiration  from  the  sight  of  man's  tribute  to  moral  worth 
and  emulate  the  noble  example  of  those  thus  commemorated  who 
were  not  born  to  die. 

General  James  Shields — Illinios'  Supreme  Court  Judge,  her  gen 
eral  in  the  Mexican  War,  the  United  States  Senator  from  Illinois, 
Minnesota  and  Missouri,  and  the  only  conqueror  of  Stonewall  Jack 
son — and  Frances  E.  Willard — the  uncrowned  queen  of  purity  and 
temperance,  America's  pride  and  Illinois'  glory — are  beacon  lights  of 
honor,  wisdom,  valor,  self-sacrifice  and  devotion  to  God,  humanity 
and  country,  who  deserve  all  honor  that  man  can  bestow. 

Respectfully  yours, 

WM.   H.  CONDON. 

The  South  Park  Commissioners  are  appointed  by  the  Circuit 
judges  of  the  state  court,  and  have  the  power  to  grant  or  refuse  per 
mission  to  erect  statues  on  the  Lake  Front,  now  called  Grant  Park. 
In  October,  1898,  I  wrote,  requesting  leave  to  erect  one  of  General 
Shields  near  that  of  General  John  A.  Logan,  and  was  notified  merely 
that  my  "request  was  refused."  I  then  obtained  the  signatures  of  the 
following-named  gentlemen  and  others  and  presented  them: 

Justice  Magruder,  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Illinois,  Judge 
Kohlsaat  of  the  United  States  District  Court,  Judges  Smith,  Chet- 
lain,  Ball  and  other  judges  of  the  Superior  Court  of  Cook  County,  ten 
County  Commissioners, Grand  Army  Representative  Members: Michael 
Cudahy,  Edward  Baggott;  Bankers  Buckingham,  Byron  L.  Smith, 
James  H.  Gilbert,  Lindgren  &  Haugan;  Merchants  Phelps,  Dodge  & 
Palmer,  Charles  P.  Kellogg  &  Co.,  George  J.  Brine  of  Armour  & 
Co.;  Lawyers  Simeon  P.  Shope,  ex-Justice  of  Illinois  Supreme  Court, 


LIFE    OF    GEN.    SHIELDS.  383 

ex-Attorney-General  McCartney,  Roy  C.  West,  J.  B.  Gascoigne, 
Hotel  Proprietor  Eden  of  Hotel  Northern;  Edward  Grace  of  Hotel 
Grace;  William  McCoy  of  McCoy's  Hotel;  S.  Gregston  of  Hotel 
Windsor,  and  scores  of  other  prominent  citizens  have  petitioned  for 
so  small  a  space  within  which  to  honor  so  eminent  a  man,  yet  the 
commissioners  have  hitherto  resisted  all  such  appeals,  while  they  have 
by  word  and  act  favored  every  project  calculated  to  absorb  large  por 
tions  of  said  park  for  avaricious  purposes,  evidently  with  the  tacit  con 
sent  of  the  Circuit  judges,  whose  relations  and  friends  crowd  their 
pay  rolls. 

Since  small  parks  are  to  be  established,  where  the  poor  will  not 
by  their  garb  offend  the  rich  or  otherwise  mar  their  pleasures,  there 
is  no  doubt  leave  can  be  obtained  to  commemorate  one  of  the  grand 
est  types  of  manhood  Americans  ever  honored  and  trusted,  one  who 
was  ever  true  and  brave. 

Later  I  presented  a  petition  of  Grand  Army  men,  but  all  was  of 
no  avail.  The  County  Commissioners,  at  my  instance,  petitioned  the 
judges  who  appoint  the  commissioners  to  use  their  influence  to  have 
granted  ten  feet  of  space  for  the  statue,  but  no  attention  was  paid  to 
the  request.  One  of  those  judges  was  a  private  in  the  Mexican  War, 
several  of  them  were  officers  in  the  Civil  War,  and  are  quite  patriotic 
at  times,  and  there  are  four  of  their  number  who  are  Irish  by  birth  or 
profession.  They  work  the  Celts  for  votes,  and  just  before  election 
are  Irish  as  Irish  can  be,  but  not  one  of  them  ever  wrote  a  line  to 
their  appointees  or  raised  his  voice  in  favor  of  this  request.  Why? 
Because  to  the  press  in  a  great  measure  they  owe  their  positions,  and 
it  has  openly  favored  allowing  the  merchants  to  use  that  park  for 
trade  purposes,  for  an  exposition,  stadium  or  palace  of  industries. 

It  is  time  public  opinion  were  aroused  and  patriotism  exhibited 
in  such  a  manner  that  the  press,  the  judiciary  and  their  office  dis 
tributers,  the  South  Park  Commissioners,  will,  for  policy's  sake,  ac 
cede  to  the  general  demand  and  grant  so  small  a  space  to  honor  so 
great  a  man.  The  base  for  his  statue  has  been  ready  for  over  a 
year,  and  the  cost  of  the  statue  can  be  readily  collected  if  a  site  for 
it  can  be  secured  in  a  suitable  location. 

I  believe  a  statue  of  him  will  be  erected  in  some  small  park  or 
public  place  in  Chicago,  if  the  South  Park  Commissioners  and  the 
Circuit  judges  of  Cook  County  who  appoint  them  persist  in  refusing 
even  ten  feet  of  the  Lake  Front  or  Grant  Park  for  his  statue,  after 
having  devoted  over  a  hundred  times  that  amount  to  Logan's  statue. 

Colonel  John  F.  Finerty,  the  editor  of  the  Chicago  Citizen,  a 
noted  Irish  orator  and  scholar,  who  served  a  term  in  Congress,  and 
has  been  a  faithful,  prominent  city  official,  endorsed  my  suggestion  in 
this  manner: 

The   Chicago    Citizen,   September  24,    1898. 

"STATUE    OF    GENERAL    SHIELDS." 

Mr.  Willian  H.  Condon,  the  distinguished  lawyer  of  this  city, 
who  was  mainly  instrumental  in  getting  the  fine  bronze  statue  of 
the  late  Major-General  James  Shields  placed  among  other  monu- 


384  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

ments  to  the  heroes  of  the  nation  in  the  rotunda  of  the  Capitol  at 
Washington,  is  now  engaged  in  seeking  to  have  a  similar  statue 
placed  on  the  Lake  Front  in  this  city,  as  General  Shields  com 
manded  Illinois  troops  in  both  the'  Mexican  and  Civil  wars,  and 
was  also  a  United  States  Senator  from  this  state,  as  well  as  from 
Minnesota  and  Missouri.  He  also  held  high  legal  position  and,  as 
Mr.  Condon  in  a  letter  to  the  Citizen  well  says,  was  his  "ideal  Irish- 
American  jurist,  statesman  and  warrior,  who  kept  his  ermine  un 
spotted,  whose  legislative  ability  was  second  to  none  of  his  illustrious 
colleagues  in  the  Senate  and  who  as  a  soldier  won  immortal  re 
nown."  The  first  and  only  defeat  sustained  by  the  celebrated  Stone 
wall  Jackson  was  at  the  hands  of  General  Shields,  and  General  Gates 
of  Alabama,  who  served  under  Jackson  in  the  battle  of  Winchester, 
fought  March  23,  1862,  said,  at  the  unveiling  of  the  Shields'  statue  by 
Mr.  Condon  in- Washington,  Dec.  6,  1893,  that  "Shields  would  have 
captured  Jackson,  with  his  entire  army,  had  his  orders  to  burn  the 
bridge  at  Port  Republic — Stonewall's  only  avenue  of  retreat — been 
carried  out  as  they  should  have  been." 

Several  Irish-Americans  of  note  have  already  subscribed  $25  each 
and  upward  for  the  placing  of  the  Shields  statue  on  the  Lake  Front. 
The  entire  cost  will  be  $6,000,  and  if  $2,000  of  that  amount  should  be 
paid  within  two  weeks,  Mr.  Condon  will  unveil  the  statue,  in  the 
presence  of  the  public,  on  October  17.  We  hope  he' will  be  enabled  to 
carry  his  patriotic  project  to  a  successful  issue. 

STATUE   TO    SHIELDS. 

Mr.  William  H.  Condon,  the  well-known  lawyer  of  Chicago,  who 
was  mainly  instrumental  in  getting  the  fine  bronze  statue  of  the  late 
Major-General  James  Shields  placed  among  other  monuments  to  the 
heroes  of  the  nation  in  the  rotunda  of  the  Capitol  at  Washington,  is 
now  engaged  in  seeking  to  have  a  similar  statue  placed  on  the  Lake 
Front  in  Chicago,  as  General  Shields  commanded  Illinois  troops  in 
both  the  Mexican  and  Civil  wars,  and  was  also  a  United  States 
Senator  from  Illinois,  as  well  as  from  Minnesota  and  Missouri. 

Several  Irish-Americans  of  note  have  already  subscribed  $25  each 
and  upward  for  the  placing  of  the  Shields  statue  on  the  Lake  Front. 
The  entire  cost  will  be  $6,000  and  if  $2,000  of  that  amount  should  be 
paid  within  two  weeks,  Mr.  Condon  will  unveil. — The  Milwaukee 
Catholic  Citizen,  Oct.  9,  1898. 

FROM  THE  CHICAGO   RECORD,   DECEMBER  8,   1893. 
THE  SHIELDS  MEMORIAL. 

The  State  of  Illinois  has  fulfilled  a  pleasant  duty  by  placing  in 
the  Capitol  at  Washington  a  memorial  statue  of  General  James 
Shields.  The  brilliant  young  Irishman  who  came  over  here  in  time 
to  fight  our  battles  at  Cerro  Gordo  and  Chapultepec  identified  him 
self  with  America  thoroughly  during  his  active  lifetime,  and  with 
no  state  was  he  more  completely  identified  than  with  Illinois. 

A  remarkable  and  dashing  figure  on  the  battlefield,  he  was  broad 
enough  of  caliber,  to  come  back  and  fulfill  the  duties  of  high  office 
both  in  legislative  and  executive  positions.  Between  the  year  when 
his  foot  first  pressed  American  soil  and  the  hour  of  his  death,  he 
not  only  made  for  himself  a  position  as  a  lawyer,  but  accepted  and 
discharged  capably  a  number  of  public  trusts,  as  state  legislator, 
state  auditor,  judge  of  the  state  Supreme  Court,  commissioner  of 
the  land  office,  governor  of  Oregon  territory,  United  States  Senator 
from  Illinois  and  Minnesota,  and,  above  all,  as  a  brave  soldier  and 
brilliant  officer  of  the  army. 

His  life  was  crowded  full  of  works  of  many  kinds,  but  it  is  for 
the  patriotism  which  directed  all  of  them  that  the  people  of  this 
state  honor  him. 


LIFE    OF    GEN.    SHIELDS.  385 

UNPUBLISHED  LETTERS. 

Chicago,  May  12,  1899. 

Editor  Tribune: — As  the  author  and  lobbyist  for  the  Shields'  and 
Willard  statues,  and  the  party  whose  request  to  place  in  Grant  Park 
a  fine  statue  of  General  Shields  on  the  Lake  Front — a  facsimile 
of  his  full-sized  portrait  in  "Peterson's  Heroes  of  the  Mexican  War" — 
I  desire  to  thank  you  for  your  editorial  of  the  loth  inst. 

Oblivion  is  man's  worst  fate,  and  indifference  is  akin  to  it.  Cen 
sure  at  least  gives  notice  of  a  movement,  and  a  free  press  gives  room 
for  discussion. 

The  people  of  Illinois,  thanks  to  the  late  illustrious  editor  of 
the  Tribune,  owes  to  its  discussion  of  the  merits  of  my  movements 
for  the  Home  for  the  Blind,  in  this  city,  the  Shields  and  Willard 
statues,  a  debt  that  can  never  be  repaid.  That  Columbus,  in  piratical 
form,  shocked  sightseers  is  no  reason  why,  with  Mr.  Hutchinson  and 
such  men  as  our  art  commissioners,  that  breathing  statues  cannot  be 
selected  of  Illinois'  two  chosen  immortals.  Unseen  hands  will  adorn 
the  statue  of  Miss  Willard  with  flowers,  emblematic  of  purity  and 
love,  and  young  and  old,  on  Decoration  Day,  at  least,  will  honor 
Shields'  statue  in  some  appropriate  manner.  They,  like  those  of 
Heloise  and  Abelard,  at  Pere  la  Chaise,  in  Paris,  will  be  objects  of 
interest  to  all  who  visit  our  city,  and  will  adorn  the  Lake  Front. 

Miss  Willard  will  be  well  guarded  with  the  gallant  John  A.  Logan 
at  her  left  and  brave  General  James  Shields  at  her  right. 

If  I  shall  have  anything  to  say  about  the  Willard  statue,  it  shall 
be  modeled  and  designed,  by  the  terms  of  the  contract  of  purchase, 
to  meet  the  most  rigid  requirements  of  the  state  art  commissioners,  and 
in  that  event,  will  the  Tribune  of  the  people,  the  great  newspaper, 
which  Chief-Justice  Ryan  of  Wisconsin  founded,  and  which  the  late 
Joseph  Medill  made  widely  known  and  highly  appreciated,  fail  to 
favor  the  adornment  of  Grant  Park  with  such  lovely  pieces  of  statuary? 

WM.   H.  CONDON. 

Chicago  Tribune,  June  16,  1899,  contained  the  following  editorial: 

"The  South  Park  Board  has  acted  wisely  in  refusing  permission 
to  erect  a  statue  to  General  Shields  in  the  Lake  Front  Park.  Its 
action  cannot  be  construed  as  disrespectful  to  the  memory  of  the 
General.  It  should,  and  undoubtedly  will,  reject  any  similar  applica 
tion  in  the  future  upon  the  ground,  and  the  proper  one,  that  the 
lake  front  is  not  the  place  for  statues.  There  is  one  statue  there 
already  which  is  offensive  from  the  artistic  point  of  view,  not  in  itself 
as  a  work  of  art,  but  because  its  location  strips  it  of  all  dignity, 
effect  and  sense  of  proportion.  The  narrow  strip  of  the  lake  front 
can  never  be  a  suitable  place  for  statues,  and  no  artist  would  volun 
tarily  select  it  to  show  his  work.  Besides,  every  statue  placed  there 
would  be  in  danger  of  obstructing  the  view  of  the  lake  which  is 
now  so  dearly  cherished  by  some  property  owners,  who  are  lovers 
of  nature  when  it  adjoins  their  property.  If  the  friends  of  General 
Shields  wish  to  erect  a  monument  to  his  memory,  undoubtedly  a  site 
can  be  found  in  some  of  the  other  parks." 

Yet  in  its  columns  would  be  found  nothing  against  placing  an 
exposition,  stadium,  or  palace  of  industries  in  that  park. 

Chicago,  July  23,  1900. 
HON.  WM.    H.   HARPER, 

President  G.  A.  R.  Encampment  Committee. 

Dear  Sir: — In  reading  the  newspapers  of  yesterday,  I  noted  with 
pleasure  that  there  was  to  be  at  the  next  Grand  Army  Reunion 
here,  an  avenue  of  fame,  which  is  to  be  adorned  with  large  portraits 


386  LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS. 

of  distinguished  generals.  It  was  a  source  of  sorrow  to  me  to  find 
that  among  the  names  that  of  General  James  Shields  was  omitted, 
probably  through  oversight.  His  record  as  a  lieutenant  in  the  Florida 
war,  his  three  wounds  received  in  the  war  with  Mexico,  as  well  as 
the  one  received  at  Winchester,  on  the  eve  of  his  victory  over 
Stonewall  Jackson,  on  March  23,  1862,  have,  in  my  humble  opinion, 
made  him  too  conspicuous  as  a  military  leader  to  be  ignored  in 
such  a  constellation  of  patriots  and  heroes,  to  say  nothing  of  his 
wonderful  record  as  a  United  States  Senator,  from  three  great 
states.  Knowing  your  reputation  for  broad  Americanism,  I  feel  at 
liberty  to  call  your  attention  to  the  omission  in  question,  believing 
that  you  will  see  that  such  action  is  taken  in  the  premises,  as  justice 
demands. 

Respectfully  yours, 

WM.   H.   CONDON. 

Chicago,  July  24,   1900. 
MR.  WM.  H.  CONDON. 

My  Dear  Sir: — I  am  just  in  receipt  of  your  favor  of  the  2jd  inst, 
and  I  note  what  you  say  about  General  James  Shields,  and  fully 
agree  with  you  that  no  Court  of  Fame  would  be  complete  by  leaving 
the  General's  portrait  put.  I  have  referred  your  letter  to  the  Chair 
man  on  Decoration,  with  the  suggestion  that  the  General's  name  be 
added. 

Thanking  you  for  calling  my  attention  to  this  matter,  which  was 
purely  an  oversight  on  the  part  of  the  committee  having  that  matter 
in  charge,  I  am, 

Very  truly  yours, 

WM.  H.  HARPER. 
Executive  Director. 

Chicago,  July  25,   1900. 
COL.  WM.   H.   HARPER,   Executive  Director. 

My  Dear  Mr.  Harper: — I  wish  to  acknowledge  receipt  of  your 
mail  favor  of  July  24th  (inclosing  a  communication  from  Win.  H. 
Condon)  requesting  that  the  portrait  of  General  James  Shields  be 
added  to  the  "Avenue  of  Fame,"  and  to  advise  that  your  suggestion 
and  request  shall  be  duly  complied  with,  and  you  can  so  advise  Mr. 
Condon,  whose  letter  I  herewith  return. 

Respectfully  yours, 

L.  W.  PITCHER. 
Chairman  Committee  on  Decorations. 

Chicago,  July  26,   1900. 
MR.   WM.   J.  CONDON. 

My  Dear  Sir: — In  further  reply  to  your  favor  of  the  23d  inst.  I 
herewith   inclose    letter    received    to-day    from    Mr.    L.    W.    Pitcher, 
Chairman    of   the    Committee   on    Decorations,    which   explains   itself. 
Yours  very  truly, 

WM.   H,   HARPER. 
Executive  Director. 

CONCLUSION, 

I    did    not    undertake    to    publish    Senator    Shields' 
speeches  in  full;  they  would  fill  a  large  volume,  and  if  in- 


LIFE     OF     GEN.    SHIELDS.  387 

eluded  in  his  life  would  increase  the  cost  of  the  work  so 
that  it  would  be  beyond  the  reach  of  the  masses. 

The  Congressional  Globe,  found  in  all  city  and  state 
libraries,  is  a  treasure-house  stored  with  a  vast  amount  of 
Senator  Shields'  wisdom  and  eloquence.  Want  of  space 
also  denies  me  the  privilege  of  publishing  the  very  elo 
quent  speeches  delivered  in  both  Houses  of  Congress  on 
the  purchase  of  his  swords.  For  the  same  reason  I  am 
compelled  to  omit  much  of  interest  about  his  labors  for 
Irish  colonization  in  America,  and  many  interesting  lec 
tures  delivered  by  him  throughout  the  country. 

What  I  have  sought  to  do  is  to  arouse  an  interest  in 
the  great  work  done  by  General  Shields  during  his  lengthy 
public  career,  and  if  I  have  succeeded  in  this  my  labor 
has  not  been  in  vain. 

I  hope  and  pray  that  a  statue  of  him  may  yet  adorn 
the  parks  of  the  greatest  cities  in  Illinois,  Minnesota  and 
Missouri,  or  the  capitols  thereof. 

That  one  should  be  erected  at  Washington,  all  must 
concede,  when  many  of  its  choice  places  have  statues  of 
men  whose  achievements  were  far  beneath  that  of  General 
Shields. 

To  others  I  must  leave  the  pleasant  task  of  seeing  that 
these  are  erected,  but  that  they  will  be  I  fondly  hope  and 
confidently  expect. 


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